Shloka 23

Devanagari script

गतोदके सेतुबन्धो यादृक्‌ तादूड्मतिस्तव । संदीप्ते भवने यद्वत्‌ कृूपस्य खननं तथा,जैसे पानीकी बाढ़ निकल जानेपर पुल बाँधनेका प्रयास किया जाय अथवा घरमें आग लग जानेपर उसे बुझानेके लिये कुआँ खोदनेकी चेष्टा की जाय, उसी प्रकार आपकी यह समझ है

Transliteration

gatodake setubandho yādṛk tādūḍhmatistava | sandīpte bhavane yadvat kūpasya khananaṃ tathā ||

Translation

Sanjaya said: “Your counsel is like trying to build a bridge after the floodwaters have already passed, or like digging a well only after a house has caught fire. In the same way, your understanding comes too late—when the moment for timely, effective action has already been lost.”

Word by Word

गत-उदकेwhen the water has gone / after the flood has subsided

सेतु-बन्धःthe building of a bridge/embankment

यादृक्such as / of what kind

तादृक्just so / of that kind

मतिःunderstanding, thought

तवof you / your

संदीप्तेwhen (it is) blazing/burning

भवनेin a house

यद्वत्just as

कूपस्यof a well

खननम्digging

तथाso, likewise

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sanjaya

bridge (setu)

house (bhavana)

well (kūpa)

floodwater (udaka)

fire (agni implied by sandīpta)

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?

Wisdom must be timely: advice or corrective action given after the decisive moment is ineffective. The verse criticizes delayed understanding and urges foresight and prompt ethical action before harm becomes irreversible.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sanjaya rebukes the king’s belated realization and counsel during the unfolding catastrophe of the war. Using two vivid analogies—building a bridge after the flood and digging a well after a house is burning—he underscores that the king’s insight has come too late to avert the consequences already set in motion.