Shloka 8

ब्राह्मणानुयात्रा—शौनकोपदेशः

Brāhmaṇas Follow into Exile and Śaunaka’s Instruction

Devanagari script

आहरेयुरिमे येडषपि फलमूलमधूनि च । त इमे शोकजेैर्दु:खैर्भ्रातरो मे विमोहिता:,युधिष्ठटिर बोले--विप्रगण! मेरे मनमें भी ब्राह्मणोंके प्रति उत्तम भक्ति है, किंतु यह सब प्रकारके सहायक साधनोंका अभाव ही मुझे दुःखमग्न-सा किये देता है। जो फल-मूल एवं शहद आदि आहार जुटाकर ला सकते थे वे ही ये मेरे भाई शोकजनित दुःखसे मोहित हो रहे हैं

Transliteration

āhareyur ime ye 'pi phala-mūla-madhūni ca | ta ime śoka-jair duḥkhair bhrātaro me vimohitāḥ ||

Translation

Yudhiṣṭhira said: “Even those among us who could have gone out and brought back food—fruits, roots, and honey—those very brothers of mine are now bewildered, overcome by grief-born sorrow. Though I bear sincere reverence for the Brahmins, the sheer lack of supporting means and resources weighs on me and plunges me into distress.”

Word by Word

• [{'term': 'āhareyuḥ', 'definition': 'could bring (back), could procure (food)

• optative/possibility sense'}, {'term': 'ime', 'definition': 'these (people), here: my brothers present here'}, {'term': "ye 'pi", 'definition': 'even those who'}, {'term': 'phala', 'definition': 'fruit'}, {'term': 'mūla', 'definition': 'root

• edible roots/tubers'}, {'term': 'madhūni', 'definition': 'honeys

• honey (as food)'}, {'term': 'śoka-jaiḥ', 'definition': 'born of grief

• arising from sorrow'}, {'term': 'duḥkhaiḥ', 'definition': 'by sufferings, by pains'}, {'term': 'bhrātaraḥ', 'definition': 'brothers'}, {'term': 'me', 'definition': 'my'}, {'term': 'vimohitāḥ', 'definition': 'bewildered, deluded, mentally overwhelmed'}]

Speaker

युधिछिर उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Yudhiṣṭhira
• the Pāṇḍava brothers (collectively)
• fruits (phala)
• roots (mūla)
• honey (madhu)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights how grief can paralyze even capable people, and it frames Yudhiṣṭhira’s ethical anxiety: he wishes to uphold reverence and proper support for Brahmins/guests, yet feels pained by the lack of means in exile. It underscores the dharmic tension between intention (bhakti/śraddhā) and practical capacity (upakaraṇa/saṃbhāra).

What is happening in the narrative?

In the early forest-exile setting, Yudhiṣṭhira observes that his brothers—who could normally gather simple forest provisions like fruits, roots, and honey—are now mentally overwhelmed by sorrow. He voices his distress that their grief and their reduced resources hinder their ability to meet duties of support and hospitality.