Shloka 18
धृतराष्ट उवाच तस्या: कृपणचक्षुर्भ्या प्रदह्नेतापि मेदिनी,धृतराष्ट्रने कहा--संजय! द्रौपदीके उन दीनतापूर्ण नेत्रोंद्वारा यह सारी पृथ्वी दग्ध हो सकती थी
dhṛtarāṣṭra uvāca | tasyāḥ kṛpaṇa-cakṣurbhyāṃ pradahnetāpi medinī |
Dhṛtarāṣṭra said: “Sañjaya, by the pitiable, grief-stricken gaze of Draupadī, even the whole earth could have been set ablaze.”
धृतराष्ट उवाच
Educational Q&A
Adharma committed in a royal court—especially the public violation of a virtuous woman’s dignity—creates a moral fire that can spread beyond individuals to consume kingdoms. A ruler’s failure to restrain wrongdoing becomes a cause of collective ruin.
In the aftermath of Draupadī’s humiliation in the assembly, Dhṛtarāṣṭra speaks to Sañjaya, remarking that her sorrowful gaze itself had the power to burn the earth—an image foretelling the catastrophic consequences that will follow from the Kauravas’ injustice.