Shloka 4

स्त्री-विलापः — गान्धार्याः रणभूमिदर्शनं शापवचनं च

Battlefield Lament and Gāndhārī’s Curse

Devanagari script

हतबन्धुरनाथा च वेपन्ती मधुरस्वरा,श्रीकृष्ण! अपने जीवनबन्धुके मारे जानेसे अनाथ हुई यह रानी काँपती हुई मधुर स्वरसे विलाप कर रही है। घामसे मुरझाती हुई नाना प्रकारकी पुष्पमालाओंके समान ये राज-रानियाँ धूपसे तप गयीं हैं, तो भी इनके शरीरोंको सौन्दर्य--श्री छोड़ नहीं रही है

Transliteration

hatabandhur anāthā ca vepantī madhurasvarā | śrīkṛṣṇa! apane jīvanabandhuke māre jāne se anātha huī yaha rānī kāṁpatī huī madhura svar se vilāpa kara rahī hai | ghām se murjhātī huī nānā prakār kī puṣpamālāoṁ ke samān ye rāja-rāniyāṁ dhūp se tap gaīṁ haiṁ, to bhī inke śarīroṁ ko saundarya-śrī choṛ nahīṁ rahī hai |

Translation

Vaiśampāyana said: Bereft of her kinsmen and left without protection, the queen trembles and laments in a sweet, broken voice. O Śrī Kṛṣṇa, since her very life’s companion has been slain, she has become helpless. And those royal women—like many kinds of flower garlands that droop under heat—have been scorched by the sun; yet the radiance of beauty and royal grace has not abandoned their bodies.

Word by Word

• हत: slain / killed
• Type: Adjective
• Root: हन् (धातु) → हत (कृदन्त)
• Form: feminine, nominative, singular

• बन्धु: kinsman, relative
• Type: Noun
• Root: बन्धु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: masculine, nominative, singular

• अनाथा: helpless, without protector
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अनाथ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: feminine, nominative, singular

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)

• वेपन्ती: trembling
• वेपन्ती: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: वेप् (धातु) → वेपन्ती (वर्तमान कृदन्त)
• Form: present (participle), singular, feminine, nominative

• मधुर: sweet
• Type: Adjective
• Root: मधुर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: feminine, instrumental, singular

• स्वरा: with (her) voice/tone
• स्वरा: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्वर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: feminine, instrumental, singular

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• वैशम्पायन (Vaiśampāyana)
• श्रीकृष्ण (Śrī Kṛṣṇa)
• रानी (the queen/widowed royal lady)
• राज-रानियाँ (royal women/queens)
• पुष्पमालाएँ (flower garlands)
• धूप (sunlight/heat)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the ethical aftermath of war: the true ‘victory’ is shadowed by bereavement and helplessness. Yet it also points to an enduring dignity—beauty and royal grace remain even when life is shattered—inviting compassion and moral reflection on the costs of violence.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana describes a queen who, having lost her husband and kin, trembles and laments before Śrī Kṛṣṇa. He also depicts the other royal women, sun-scorched and exhausted, compared to wilting flower garlands, yet still retaining their natural splendor—an image intensifying the scene’s sorrow.