Shloka 24

Yudhiṣṭhira’s Reproof and Vow-Logic: On Dice-Deception, Exile Terms, and the Governance of Anger

Adhyāya 35

Devanagari script

अज्ञातचर्या गूढेन पृथिव्यां विश्रुतेन च

Transliteration

ajñātacaryā gūḍhena pṛthivyāṃ viśrutena ca

Translation

Bhīmasena said: “By living in concealment through an unknown mode of conduct, and also by being widely renowned across the earth…”

Word by Word

• अज्ञातचर्या: unknown/secret mode of conduct (living incognito)
• अज्ञातचर्या: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: अज्ञातचर्या
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• गूढेन: by/with (something) hidden, secretly
• गूढेन: Karana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: गूढ
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Instrumental, Singular

• पृथिव्याम्: on the earth, in the world
• पृथिव्याम्: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: पृथिवी
• Form: Feminine, Locative, Singular

• विश्रुतेन: by/with (something) renowned, famous
• विश्रुतेन: Karana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: विश्रुत
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Instrumental, Singular

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

Speaker

भीमसेन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhīmasena

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The line juxtaposes two forces in dharmic life: prudent secrecy (gūḍha, ajñātacaryā) when circumstances demand protection, and the moral weight of public reputation (viśruta) that follows one’s actions in the world.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhīma begins a statement about acting in concealment—living or moving without being recognized—while also invoking the idea of being ‘renowned on earth,’ setting up a contrast between hidden strategy and public fame in the ongoing exile context.