Shloka 41
धृतराष्ट्र–दुर्योधन संवादः
Vāraṇāvata-vivāsana-nīti: Dhṛtarāṣṭra and Duryodhana’s Policy Dialogue
भरद्वाजसखा चासीत् पृषतो नाम पार्थिव: । तस्यापि द्रुपदो नाम तदा समभवत् सुत:,उन दिनों पृषत नामसे प्रसिद्ध एक भूपाल महर्षि भरद्वाजके मित्र थे। उन्हें भी उसी समय एक पुत्र हुआ, जिसका नाम द्रुपद था
bharadvājasakhā cāsīt pṛṣato nāma pārthivaḥ | tasyāpi drupado nāma tadā samabhavat sutaḥ ||
Vaiśampāyana said: There was a king named Pṛṣata, who was a friend of the sage Bharadvāja. At that very time, he too had a son, who came to be known as Drupada. The narration situates Drupada’s birth within a network of friendship between royal and brahminical lineages, foreshadowing later alliances and rivalries shaped by duty, honor, and inherited relationships.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores how personal bonds—here, friendship between a sage and a king—form the social fabric through which future events unfold. It hints that dharma and conflict in the epic are often rooted in inherited relationships and the networks connecting royal and brahminical spheres.
Vaiśampāyana continues a genealogical account: he introduces King Pṛṣata as Bharadvāja’s friend and states that Pṛṣata had a son named Drupada, thereby placing Drupada into the epic’s lineage framework.