Shloka 16
Śoka-śamana: Kṛṣṇa’s Consolation and Nārada’s Exempla to Sṛñjaya
Chapter 29
मृतान् महानुभावांस्त्व॑ श्रुव्वैव पृथिवीपतीन्
mṛtān mahānubhāvāṁs tvaṁ śrutvaiva pṛthivīpatīn
Having heard that those great-souled kings—lords of the earth—have died, you are struck by the weight of that news. The line evokes the ethical shock of mortality and the sobering recognition that even the most powerful rulers are not beyond death.
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores impermanence: even great kings and powerful rulers are subject to death. Ethically, it invites humility, restraint in pride, and a dharmic perspective that measures life by right conduct rather than worldly status.
Vāyudeva addresses the listener, pointing to the impact of hearing that eminent kings have died. The statement functions as a reflective prompt—turning attention from worldly greatness to the reality of death and the moral seriousness it demands.