Shloka 33

Devanagari script

तां प्रत्यगृह्नात्‌ कौन्तेय: सुतस्यार्थे धनंजय: । सौभद्रस्यानवद्याड़्रीं विराटतनयां तदा,उस समय कुन्तीनन्दन अर्जुनने अपने पुत्र सुभद्राकुमार अभिमन्युके लिये निर्दोष अंगोंवाली विराटकुमारी उत्तराको ग्रहण किया

Transliteration

tāṃ pratyagṛhṇāt kaunteyaḥ sutasyārthe dhanaṃjayaḥ | saubhadrasya anavadyāṅgīṃ virāṭatanayāṃ tadā ||

Translation

Vaiśampāyana sprach: Da nahm Dhanaṃjaya Arjuna, der Sohn Kuntīs, die makelliedrige Tochter Virāṭas—Uttarā—als Braut für seinen Sohn Saubhadra (Abhimanyu) an. So handelte Arjuna im Einklang mit dem Dharma: Er ehrte die Verwandtschaft, wahrte die Sitte und stiftete ein rechtmäßiges Bündnis ohne persönliche Aneignung.

Word by Word

ताम्her

प्रतिtowards; in return; (as preverb with verb)

अगृह्णात्accepted; took (in marriage)

कौन्तेयःson of Kunti (Arjuna)

सुतस्यof (his) son

अर्थेfor the sake/purpose

धनंजयःDhananjaya (Arjuna)

सौभद्रस्यof Saubhadra (Abhimanyu)

अनवद्याङ्गीम्she whose limbs are faultless (blameless-limbed)

विराटतनयाम्the daughter of Virata (Uttara)

तदाthen

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

Arjuna (Dhanaṃjaya, Kaunteya)

Abhimanyu (Saubhadra)

Subhadrā

Uttarā (Virāṭatanayā)

King Virāṭa

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?

The verse highlights dharmic restraint and right conduct: Arjuna does not seek a match for himself but arranges a proper alliance for his son, preserving social propriety, honoring relationships, and strengthening legitimate bonds between families.

What is happening in the narrative?

After the Pandavas’ incognito stay in Virāṭa’s kingdom, Arjuna formally accepts Princess Uttarā, Virāṭa’s daughter, as the bride for his son Abhimanyu (Saubhadra), establishing a marital alliance between the Pandavas and Virāṭa.