Shloka 23

Devanagari script

कथमेका सती भैमी मया विरहिता शुभा । चरिष्यति वने घोरे मृगव्यालनिषेविते,“यह भयंकर वन हिंसक पशुओं और सर्पोंसे भरा है। मुझसे बिछुड़कर शुभलक्षणा सती दमयन्ती अकेली इस वनमें कैसे विचरण करेगी?

Transliteration

katham ekā satī bhaimī mayā virahitā śubhā | cariṣyati vane ghore mṛgavyālanisevite ||

Translation

Bṛhadaśva said: “How will the virtuous Bhīmī—auspicious and faithful—bereft of me, wander alone in this dreadful forest, a haunt of wild beasts and predators?”

Word by Word

कथम्how?

एकाalone, single

सतीvirtuous, faithful

भैमीBhaimī (Damayantī, daughter of Bhīma)

मयाby me

विरहिताseparated (from), bereft (of)

शुभाauspicious, fair

चरिष्यतिwill roam, will move about

वनेin the forest

घोरेterrible, dreadful

मृगdeer/wild animals

व्यालwild beasts (esp. predators/serpents)

निषेवितेfrequented/inhabited (by)

Speaker

बृहदश्च उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bṛhadaśva

Bhīmī (Damayantī)

forest (vana)

wild beasts/predators (mṛga, vyāla)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the ethical impulse of responsibility and protective concern: separation from one’s dependent companion—especially in a perilous setting—naturally awakens anxiety and a sense of duty, underscoring the moral weight of safeguarding those entrusted to one’s care.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bṛhadaśva, narrating the Nala–Damayantī episode to Yudhiṣṭhira, voices the fear that Damayantī (Bhīmī), now separated, must face a terrifying forest alone—one inhabited by wild and dangerous creatures.