Shloka 18
ऋषिसमागमः — युधिष्ठिरस्य शोकवर्णनम्
Sage Assembly and Yudhiṣṭhira’s Articulation of Grief
यह द्रुपदकुमारी कृष्णा अपने पुत्रोंके मारे जानेसे अत्यन्त दीन हो गयी है। इस बेचारीके भाई-बन्धु भी मार डाले गये। यह हमलोंगोंके प्रिय और हितमें सदा लगी रहती है। मैं जब-जब इसकी ओर देखता हूँ तब-तब मेरे मनमें अधिक-से-अधिक पीड़ा होने लगती है।।
yudhiṣṭhira uvāca | iyam drupadakumārī kṛṣṇā putrāṇāṃ nidhane nātīva dīnā jātā | asyāś ca bhrātṛ-bandhavā api nihātāḥ | eṣā asmākaṃ priyā hitaiṣiṇī ca sadā | yāvad yāvad enam paśyāmi tāvat tāvad mama manasi bhūyo-bhūyaḥ pīḍā vardhate || idam anyat tu bhagavan yat tvāṃ vakṣyāmi nārada | mantra-saṃvaraṇenāsmi kuntyā duḥkhena yojitaḥ ||
Yudhiṣṭhira said: “This Krishna, the daughter of Drupada (Draupadī), has been crushed by the slaughter of her sons. Her brothers and kinsmen too have been slain. She has always been dear to us and steadfastly devoted to our welfare. Whenever I look upon her, my heart is pierced with ever-increasing pain. And, O blessed Nārada, there is another matter I must tell you—more grievous still: by concealing the secret of Karṇa’s birth, my mother Kuntī has bound me to profound sorrow.”
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds the ethical weight of war’s aftermath: true dharma includes compassionate attention to the suffering of innocents (Draupadī) and honest reckoning with the consequences of secrecy within family bonds (Kuntī’s concealment about Karṇa), which deepens moral anguish and complicates responsibility.
In the opening of Śānti Parva, Yudhiṣṭhira speaks to the sage Nārada, describing his acute pain on seeing Draupadī devastated by the deaths of her sons and kin, and then adds a further sorrow: Kuntī’s long-hidden revelation about Karṇa’s birth, which intensifies his grief and guilt after the war.