Shloka 17
धृतराष्ट्रस्य वनप्रस्थानानुज्ञा | Permission for Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Forest-Retirement
अरण्यगमने बुद्धिर्गान्धारीसहितस्य मे,तेषामस्थिरबुद्धीनां लुब्धानां कामचारिणाम्
araṇyagamane buddhir gāndhārīsahitasya me, teṣām asthirabuddhīnāṁ lubdhānāṁ kāmacāriṇām
Vaiśampāyana said: “My resolve was to depart for the forest together with Gāndhārī—seeing those people as fickle-minded, greedy, and driven by unrestrained desire.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
When society is marked by unstable judgment, greed, and desire-driven conduct, a dharmic response may be withdrawal from power and a turn toward restraint and renunciation, rather than participation in moral disorder.
The speaker reports a firm decision to go to the forest together with Gāndhārī, motivated by disillusionment with the conduct of certain people described as fickle-minded, greedy, and acting at the whim of desire.