Shloka 11
अध्याय ३३ — कर्म, दैव, हठ, स्वभाव और पुरुषार्थ पर द्रौपदी का उपदेश
Draupadī on Action, Fate, and Human Effort
अथैनामन्ववेक्षस्व मृगचर्यामिवात्मन: । दुर्बलाचरितां राजन् न बलस्थैनिषिविताम्,“राजन! मृगोंके समान अपनी इस वनचर्यापर ही दृष्टिपात कीजिये। दुर्बल मनुष्य ही इस प्रकार वनमें रहकर समय बिताते हैं। बलवान् मनुष्य वनवासका सेवन नहीं करते
atha enām anvavekṣasva mṛgacaryām iva ātmanaḥ | durbalācaritāṁ rājan na balasthaiḥ niṣevitām ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “O King, look closely at this way of life of yours in the forest—like the roaming of wild deer. Such a mode of passing one’s days in the woods is the practice of the weak; it is not a course embraced by those who possess strength.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse urges a ruler to evaluate whether a passive, animal-like forest existence is appropriate; it frames mere endurance in exile as a path of the weak, implying that strength should express itself through purposeful action aligned with one’s dharma rather than resignation.
In Vaiśampāyana’s narration, a king is being addressed and admonished to reflect on his current forest-dwelling; the speaker contrasts such life with the conduct expected of the strong, sharpening the moral tension around exile, agency, and royal duty.