Shloka 32
Vyāsa’s Inquiry into Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Tapas and the Identification of Vidura with Dharma
पज्चाला: सुभृशं क्षीणा: कथामात्रावशेषिता: । न तेषां कुलकर्तारं कंचित् पश्याम्यहं शुभे
Pāñcālāḥ subhṛśaṃ kṣīṇāḥ kathāmātrāvaśeṣitāḥ | na teṣāṃ kulakartāraṃ kañcit paśyāmy ahaṃ śubhe ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “The Pāñcālas have been utterly diminished—left only as a tale. O auspicious lady, I do not see anyone at all who could now sustain and continue their lineage.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the fragility of worldly power and lineage: even renowned dynasties can be reduced to mere memory. It implicitly warns that adharma and the violence of conflict can annihilate not only individuals but also the continuity of a kula (family line), making the preservation of righteous conduct and social responsibility (kula-dharma) ethically weighty.
Vaiśaṃpāyana reports that the Pāñcālas have been virtually wiped out—so thoroughly that they survive only in stories. Addressing an unnamed ‘auspicious lady,’ he adds that he sees no surviving figure capable of carrying forward the Pāñcāla lineage.