Shloka 11
रुरुचर्मावृततनून् हिया किंचिदवाड्मुखान् । परै: परीतान् संहृष्टे: सुहृद्धिश्चानुशोचितान्,उनके सभी अंग मृगचर्मसे ढँके हुए थे और वे लज्जावश नीचे मुख किये चले जा रहे थे। हर्षमें भरे हुए शत्रुओंने उन्हें सब ओरसे घेर रखा था और हितैषी सुहृद् उनके लिये शोक कर रहे थे
Vaiśaṃpāyana uvāca: rurucarmāvṛta-tanūn hrīyā kiṃcid avāṅmukhān | paraiḥ parītān saṃhṛṣṭaiḥ suhṛdbhiś cānuśocitān ||
Vaiśaṃpāyana said: Covered in deerskins, their bodies wrapped over, they moved along with faces lowered in shame. Exultant enemies hemmed them in on every side, while their well-wishing friends looked on with grief. The scene lays bare the moral wound of humiliation—how triumph without restraint becomes cruelty, and how the dishonoured are made to bear a public spectacle.
वैशमग्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights an ethical contrast: the defeated feel shame and lowered dignity, while the victors’ joy turns into harshness when it becomes public humiliation. It implicitly critiques triumph that lacks restraint (dama) and compassion (dayā), reminding that dharma is tested most in moments of power over others.
Those who have been forced into a degrading condition are described as wrapped in deerskins and walking with downcast faces. Enemies, delighted, surround them, while their friends grieve—portraying a public spectacle of dishonour within the Sabha Parva’s political conflict.