Shloka 23
अध्याय १५ (Āśramavāsika-parva): धृतराष्ट्रस्य वनवासानुज्ञायाचनम् — Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s renewed plea for consent to forest-dwelling
अस्मानुत्सृज्य राज्यं च स्नुषा हीमा यशस्विनि । कथं वत्स्यसि दुर्गेषु वनेष्वद्य प्रसीद मे,“यशस्विनी मा! भला आप हमको, अपनी इन बहुओंको और इस राज्यको छोड़कर अब उन दुर्गम वनोंमें कैसे रह सकेंगी; अत: हमलोगोंपर कृपा करके यहीं रहिये"
asmān utsṛjya rājyaṃ ca snuṣā hīmā yaśasvini | kathaṃ vatsyasi durgeṣu vaneṣv adya prasīda me ||
“O illustrious lady, abandoning us, this kingdom, and your daughters-in-law—how will you live today in forests that are hard to traverse? Have compassion on us; be pleased and stay here.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical tension between renunciation and relational responsibility: even a revered person’s withdrawal to the forest is questioned when it appears to abandon dependents and social duties, and compassion is invoked as a dharmic reason to remain.
A speaker appeals to an illustrious woman not to depart for the difficult forests, arguing that leaving behind the family (including daughters-in-law) and the kingdom would be too harsh; the plea asks her to relent and stay.