Shloka 3

Bhīma–Draupadī Saṃvāda on Restraint, Protection, and the Kīcaka Threat

Virāṭa-parva, Adhyāya 20

Devanagari script

अनित्या किल मर्त्यनामर्थसिद्धिर्जयाजयौ । इति कृत्वा प्रतीक्षामि भर्तृणामुदयं पुन:,मनुष्योंकी अर्थ-सिद्धि या जय-पराजय अनित्य हैं। वे सदा स्थिर नहीं रहते। यही सोचकर मैं अपने पतियोंके पुनः अभ्युदयकी प्रतीक्षा करती हूँ

Transliteration

anityā kila martyānām artha-siddhir jayājayau | iti kṛtvā pratīkṣāmi bhartṝṇām udayaṃ punaḥ ||

Translation

„Wahrlich, unter den Sterblichen sind das Erreichen der Ziele — ebenso Sieg und Niederlage — vergänglich; nichts bleibt fest. In diesem Verständnis harre ich der erneuten Erhebung und Wiederherstellung meiner Gatten.“

Word by Word

अनित्याimpermanent

किलindeed/it is said

मर्त्यानाम्of mortals

अर्थसिद्धिःattainment of aims/success

जयाजयौvictory and defeat

इतिthus

कृत्वाhaving done (having thought/considered)

प्रतीक्षामिI wait/expect

भर्तॄणाम्of (my) husbands/lords

उदयम्rise/prosperity

पुनःagain

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

bhartṛ (the husbands—contextually the Pāṇḍavas)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Human success and failure—victory and defeat—are unstable and change with time; recognizing this impermanence supports patience, resilience, and steadfast hope rather than despair.

What is happening in the narrative?

A speaker expresses a reflective resolve: understanding that worldly outcomes fluctuate, she chooses to wait confidently for her husbands’ renewed prosperity and return to ascendancy.