Shloka 3
Kuntī’s Consolation to Draupadī and Lament for the Dispossessed Pandavas (सभा पर्व, अध्याय 70)
दुर्योधन उवाच तिष्ठत्वयं प्रश्न उदारसत्त्वे भीमे<र्जुने सहदेवे तथैव । पत्यौ च ते नकुले याज्ञसेनि वदन्त्वेते वचन त्वत्प्रसूतम्
duryodhana uvāca tiṣṭhatv ayaṃ praśna udārasattve bhīme 'rjune sahadeve tathaiva | patyau ca te nakule yājñaseni vadantv ete vacanaṃ tvatprasūtam ||
Duryodhana said: “Let this question stand, O noble-hearted one—(to be answered) by Bhīma, by Arjuna, and likewise by Sahadeva; and also by your husband Nakula, O Yājñasenī. Let these men speak the words that arise from you.”
दुर्योधन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how power can try to control moral discourse: Duryodhana attempts to shift responsibility and compel others to echo Draupadī’s words, underscoring the ethical tension between truthful speech, coercion, and dharma in a public assembly.
In the Kuru court setting, Duryodhana addresses Draupadī (Yājñasenī) and calls upon Bhīma, Arjuna, Sahadeva, and Nakula to respond—pressing them to speak statements framed as originating from her, intensifying the confrontation and the scrutiny of dharma.