Shloka 3
Pāṇḍu’s Marriages, Conquests, and Triumphal Return (पाण्डोर्विवाह-विजय-प्रत्यागमनम्)
वैशम्पायन उवाच ततः सत्यवती भीष्मं वाचा संसज्जमानया । विहसन्तीव सत्रीडमिदं वचनमब्रवीत्
vaiśampāyana uvāca tataḥ satyavatī bhīṣmaṃ vācā saṃsajjamānayā | vihasantīva sa-trīḍam idaṃ vacanam abravīt |
Vaiśampāyana said: Then Satyavatī, her voice faltering with hesitation, addressed Bhīṣma. Smiling as though she might laugh, yet veiled in womanly modesty, she spoke these words—her speech growing indistinct under the restraint of bashfulness.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical texture of speech in sensitive family matters: even when duty requires difficult requests, modesty and restraint shape how one speaks, reflecting social dharma and personal decorum.
Satyavatī is about to address Bhīṣma with a delicate proposal; she begins speaking with a hesitant, modest tone, smiling faintly yet feeling bashful, signaling the gravity and intimacy of what she is about to ask.