Shloka 38
ऋषिसमागमः — युधिष्ठिरस्य शोकवर्णनम्
Sage Assembly and Yudhiṣṭhira’s Articulation of Grief
पूर्वजं भ्रातरं कर्ण पृथाया वचनात् प्रभो | तेन मे दूयते तीव्र हृदयं भ्रातृघातिन:
yudhiṣṭhira uvāca | pūrvajaṃ bhrātaraṃ karṇa pṛthāyā vacanāt prabho | tena me dūyate tīvraṃ hṛdayaṃ bhrātṛghātinaḥ, dvijaśreṣṭha ||
Yudhiṣṭhira said: “O Lord, O best of Brahmins—only from Pṛthā (Kuntī)’s words did I learn that Karṇa was my elder brother. Because of that, my heart burns with intense anguish: I have become the slayer of my own brother.”
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds the ethical shock that arises when hidden kinship is revealed after irreversible action. Yudhiṣṭhira’s anguish shows how dharma is not only about outward duty in war but also about inner accountability, remorse, and the tragic consequences of ignorance and secrecy.
After the war, Yudhiṣṭhira learns from Kuntī that Karṇa—killed in battle by Arjuna—was actually their eldest brother. He laments that he has effectively caused the death of his own brother and confesses intense inner pain to the Brahmin sage he is addressing.