Shloka 8
धृतराष्ट्रस्य पाण्डवेषु प्रीति-वृत्तान्तः | Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Affectionate Disposition toward the Pāṇḍavas
इमौ तौ परिघप्रख्यौ भुजी मम दुरासदौ,ययोरन्तरमासाद्य धार्तराष्ट्रा: क्षयं गता: । “देखो, ये हैं मेरे दोनों परिघके समान सुदृढ़ एवं दुर्जय बाहुदण्ड; जिनके बीचमें पड़कर धृतराष्ट्रके बेटे पिस गये हैं
imau tau parighaprakhyau bhujī mama durāsadau, yayor antaram āsādya dhārtarāṣṭrāḥ kṣayaṃ gatāḥ |
Vaiśaṃpāyana said: “These two arms of mine, formidable like iron clubs and impossible to withstand—caught between them, the sons of Dhṛtarāṣṭra were crushed and brought to destruction.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the ethical burden of power: martial strength, even when exercised within a warrior’s duty, leaves a lasting imprint of destruction. It invites reflection on how victory in war can carry grief, responsibility, and moral reckoning.
The narrator reports a statement pointing to the speaker’s own arms—likened to crushing clubs—as the means by which the Dhārtarāṣṭras (Kauravas) met their end, emphasizing the physical inevitability and tragic finality of their destruction.