Mahabharata 9.32.8 — Shalya Parva, Adhyaya 32, Shloka 8

Bhīma–Duryodhana Gadāyuddha Saṃkalpa

Resolve for the Mace Duel

Devanagari script

श्रुत्वा स कटुका वाचो विषमस्थो नराधिप: । दीर्घमुष्णं च नि:श्वस्य सलिलस्थ: पुन: पुन:

Transliteration

śrutvā sa kaṭukā vāco viṣamastho narādhipaḥ | dīrgham uṣṇaṃ ca niḥśvasya salilasthaḥ punaḥ punaḥ ||

Translation

Sañjaya said: Hearing those harsh words, the king—caught in a perilous predicament—heaved long, hot sighs again and again, as though submerged in water, overwhelmed and struggling to steady himself.

Word by Word

• श्रुत्वा: having heard
• श्रुत्वा: Adhikarana
• Type: Verb
• Root: श्रु (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्यय (gerund), कर्तरि

• सः: he
• सः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• कटुकाः: harsh, bitter
• कटुकाः: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कटुक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Plural

• वाचः: words, speech
• वाचः: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: वाच् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Plural

• विषमस्थः: standing/being in a difficult position
• विषमस्थः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: विषम-स्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• नराधिपः: king, lord of men
• नराधिपः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: नर-अधिप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• दीर्घम्: long (for a long time/longly)
• दीर्घम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दीर्घ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• उष्णम्: hot, heated
• उष्णम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: उष्ण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• निःश्वस्य: having sighed/breathed out
• निःश्वस्य: Adhikarana
• Type: Verb
• Root: नि-श्वस् (धातु)
• Form: ल्यबन्त अव्यय (absolutive/gerund), कर्तरि

• सलिलस्थः: being in the water
• सलिलस्थः: Adhikarana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सलिल-स्थ (прातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• पुनः: again
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पुनः

• पुनः: again
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पुनः

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• narādhipa (the king, i.e., Dhṛtarāṣṭra in context)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Harsh speech has immediate moral and psychological consequences: it can wound, destabilize judgment, and deepen suffering—especially in moments of crisis—so restraint and responsibility in speech are ethically significant.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya narrates that the king, after hearing bitter words, becomes inwardly shaken; he repeatedly exhales long, burning sighs, portrayed with the vivid simile of someone submerged in water—overwhelmed and struggling under the weight of events.