Shloka 13
मārkaṇḍeya-ukta yuddha-vyūha-pratyavyūhaḥ
Battle Formations and Countermeasures in the Rāmopākhyāna
द्रौपहुुवाच महाबला किंच्विह दुर्बलेव सौवीरराजस्य मताहमस्मि । नाहं प्रमाथादिह सम्प्रतीता सौवीरराजं कृपणं वदेयम्,द्रौोपदीने कहा--मैं महान् बल एवं शक्तिसे सम्पन्न हूँ, तो भी सौवीरराज जयद्रथकी दृष्टिमें यहाँ दुर्बल-सी प्रतीत हो रही हूँ। मुझे भगवानपर विश्वास है, मैं जोर-जबर्दस्ती करनेसे यहाँ जयद्रथके सामने कभी दीन वचन नहीं बोल सकती
Jayadratha uvāca: draupadī uvāca mahābalā kiṃ cviha durbalā iva sauvīrarājasya matāham asmi | nāhaṃ pramāthād iha sampratītā sauvīrarājaṃ kṛpaṇaṃ vadeyam |
Jayadratha said: “Draupadī said: ‘Though I am of great strength, here I seem—at least in the eyes of the king of Sauvīra—to be as if weak. I have not come to this pass through any wrongdoing; therefore I will not, even under coercion, address the king of Sauvīra with pitiable, self-abasing words.’”
जयद्रथ उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even under threat or coercion, one should not abandon dignity and dharma by resorting to degrading, fear-driven speech; moral strength can persist even when physical power is constrained.
During the Jayadratha episode in the forest, Draupadī is confronted by the king of Sauvīra. She asserts that although she appears vulnerable in his eyes, she has not fallen into this situation through any fault of her own and refuses to plead in a pitiable manner.