Shloka 17

Devanagari script

नापराध्यति बीभत्सुर्न च पार्थो वृकोदर: । नकुल: सहदेवश्न नैव जातु युधिछ्िर:,इसमें न तो अर्जुनका अपराध है और न कुन्तीपुत्र भीमसेनका। नकुल-सहदेव और युधिष्ठिरको भी कभी इसके लिये दोष नहीं दिया जा सकता

Transliteration

na aparādhyati bībhatsur na ca pārtho vṛkodaraḥ | nakulaḥ sahadevaś ca naiva jātu yudhiṣṭhiraḥ ||

Translation

Vaiśampāyana said: “In this matter, neither Bībhatsu (Arjuna) nor Vṛkodara (Bhīmasena), the son of Pṛthā (Kuntī), has committed any fault. Nor can Nakula and Sahadeva, and never Yudhiṣṭhira, be blamed for it.”

Word by Word

• न: not
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न

• अपराध्यति: commits an offence / is at fault
• Type: Verb
• Root: अपराध् (धातु)
• Form: Lat (present), 3, singular, Parasmaipada

• बीभत्सुः: Arjuna (Bībhatsu)
• बीभत्सुः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: बीभत्सु (प्रातिपदिक; अर्जुन-नाम)
• Form: masculine, nominative, singular

• न: nor / not
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न

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

• पार्थः: Pārtha (Arjuna)
• पार्थः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: पार्थ (प्रातिपदिक; अर्जुन-नाम)
• Form: masculine, nominative, singular

• वृकोदरः: Vṛkodara (Bhīma; 'wolf-bellied')
• वृकोदरः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: वृकोदर (प्रातिपदिक; भीम-नाम)
• Form: masculine, nominative, singular

• नकुलः: Nakula
• नकुलः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: नकुल (प्रातिपदिक; नाम)
• Form: masculine, nominative, singular

• सहदेवः: Sahadeva
• सहदेवः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: सहदेव (प्रातिपदिक; नाम)
• Form: masculine, nominative, singular

• न: nor / not
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न

• एव: indeed / even
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव

• जातु: ever / at any time
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: जातु

• युधिष्ठिरः: Yudhiṣṭhira
• युधिष्ठिरः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: युधिष्ठिर (प्रातिपदिक; नाम)
• Form: masculine, nominative, singular

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• Bībhatsu (Arjuna)
• Pārtha (Kuntī-putra)
• Vṛkodara (Bhīma)
• Nakula
• Sahadeva
• Yudhiṣṭhira
• Kuntī (Pṛthā)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse frames moral accountability carefully: even amid catastrophic outcomes, blame should not be assigned indiscriminately. It asserts the Pāṇḍavas’ lack of culpability in the specific matter under discussion, emphasizing restraint and fairness in ethical judgment.

What is happening in the narrative?

In Strī Parva’s post-war setting, as grief and accusations arise, Vaiśampāyana clarifies that Arjuna, Bhīma, Nakula, Sahadeva, and Yudhiṣṭhira are not at fault for the event being lamented, protecting them from misplaced condemnation.