Shloka 18

Devanagari script

पप्रच्छ तमृषिं चापि वैशम्पायनमच्युतम्‌ । कथावशेषं धर्मज्ञो वनवासस्य सत्तम,साधुशिरोमणे! तत्पश्चात्‌ उन धर्मज्ञ नरेशने धर्मसे कभी च्युत न होनेवाले महर्षि वैशम्पायनसे पुनः धृतराष्ट्रके वनवासकी अवशिष्ट कथा पूछी

Transliteration

papraccha tam ṛṣiṁ cāpi vaiśampāyanam acyutam | kathāvaśeṣaṁ dharmajño vanavāsasya sattama sādhūśiromaṇe tatpaścāt ||

Translation

Then he questioned that sage as well, the unfailing Vaiśampāyana: “O best of men, crest-jewel among the virtuous—tell me what remains of the account of Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s forest-dwelling.”

Word by Word

पप्रच्छasked

तम्him

ऋषिम्sage

चand

अपिalso

वैशम्पायनम्Vaiśampāyana

अच्युतम्the infallible one

कथाstory, account

अवशेषम्remaining, the remainder

धर्मज्ञःknower of dharma

वनवासस्यof the forest-dwelling (exile)

सत्तमO best of the good

साधुO good one

शिरोमणेO crest-jewel (best) (of the good)

Speaker

आस्तीक उवाच

Characters & Entities

Āstīka

Vaiśampāyana

Dhṛtarāṣṭra

vanavāsa (forest-dwelling)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights dharmic inquiry: a sincere seeker respectfully asks a trustworthy sage to complete an unfinished account. Ethically, it underscores that the later-life path of renunciation (vanavāsa) and its consequences deserve careful attention, not mere curiosity.

What is happening in the narrative?

Astīka, described as dharma-knowing, asks the sage Vaiśampāyana to continue and complete the remaining narrative about Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s life in the forest—what happened after the portion already told.