Shloka 16
अत्राहं गालव पुरा क्षुधार्त: परिचिन्तयन्
atrāhaṃ gālava purā kṣudhārtaḥ paricintayan
Here, O Gālava, long ago, when I was tormented by hunger, I stood reflecting deeply—seeking a course of action that would be right and effective amid distress.
युपर्ण उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even under acute bodily distress (like hunger), one should pause to reflect (paricintayan) before acting. The verse foregrounds ethical deliberation as the first step in responding to suffering, implying that necessity does not automatically justify impulsive or unrighteous action.
Yuparṇa addresses Gālava and begins recounting a past incident: he was once afflicted by hunger and, in that condition, started thinking carefully about what to do next. This line sets up a remembered episode where a decision or action will follow from that deliberation.