Shloka 37

द्रौपदी-शैब्यसंवादः — Draupadī’s Identification and Counsel on Hospitality

Devanagari script

यदा च शोचत: शोको व्यसनं नापकर्षति

Transliteration

yadā ca śocataḥ śoko vyasanaṃ nāpakarṣati

Translation

Vaiśaṃpāyana said: “And when, even as one grieves, grief does not draw away the calamity, lamentation becomes fruitless; one must then turn from sorrow toward steadiness and right action.”

Word by Word

• यदा: when
• यदा: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यदा
• Form: temporal adverb

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च
• Form: conjunction

• शोचतः: of one who is grieving
• शोचतः: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: शोचत्
• Form: masculine, genitive singular

• शोकः: grief
• शोकः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: शोक
• Form: masculine, nominative singular

• व्यसनम्: calamity; misfortune
• व्यसनम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: व्यसन
• Form: neuter, accusative singular

• न: not
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न
• Form: negation particle

• अपकर्षति: removes; draws away
• Type: Verb
• Root: अपकृष्
• Form: present tense (lat), parasmaipada, 3rd person singular

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśaṃpāyana

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

If grief cannot remove the misfortune, then mere lamentation is unproductive; one should restrain sorrow and move toward composed, dharmic action.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśaṃpāyana, as narrator, states a reflective maxim: in the face of unavoidable adversity, sorrow does not change outcomes, so the listener is urged toward steadiness rather than continued lament.