Mahabharata — Stree Parva, Shloka 30
स्त्रीपर्व १: धृतराष्ट्रशोकः संजयाश्वासनं च
Strī Parva 1: Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Lament and Saṃjaya’s Consolation
ऋषीणां च तथान्येषां व्यासस्यामिततेजस: । न कृतं तेन वचन तव पुत्रेण भारत
ṛṣīṇāṃ ca tathānyeṣāṃ vyāsasyāmitatejasaḥ | na kṛtaṃ tena vacanaṃ tava putreṇa bhārata ||
Vaiśaṃpāyana said: “O Bhārata, your son did not act upon the counsel given by the sages and by others—nor even by the mighty Vyāsa of immeasurable splendor.”
वैशमग्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Ethically, the verse highlights the ruin that follows when a leader rejects wise counsel—especially counsel grounded in dharma and offered by venerable authorities like sages and Vyāsa. Pride and obstinacy sever one from corrective guidance, making catastrophe more likely and accountability unavoidable.
In the opening of Strī Parva, Vaiśaṃpāyana recounts to Janamejaya the causes and consequences surrounding the war’s aftermath. Here he emphasizes that Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s son (implicitly Duryodhana) repeatedly refused the advice of sages and eminent elders, including Vyāsa—setting the stage for the grief and lamentation that dominate this parva.
Read Mahabharata in the Vedapath app
Scan the QR code to open this directly in the app, with audio, word-by-word meanings, and more.