Shloka 17
Parṇāda’s Report; Bāhuka’s Counsel; Damayantī’s Strategic Svayaṃvara Message (अध्याय ६८)
रूपौदार्यगुणोपेतां मण्डनाहाममण्डिताम् । चन्द्रलेखामिव नवां व्योम्नि नीलाभ्रसंवृताम्,यह रूप और उदारता आदि गुणोंसे सम्पन्न है। शृंगार धारण करनेके योग्य होनेपर भी यह शंंगारशून्य है, मानो आकाशमें मेघोंकी काली घटासे आवृत नूतन चन्द्रकला हो
yudhiṣṭhira uvāca |
rūpaudāryaguṇopetāṃ maṇḍanārhām amaṇḍitām |
candralekhām iva navāṃ vyomni nīlābhrasaṃvṛtām ||
Yudhiṣṭhira said: “She is endowed with beauty, nobility, and other virtues; though worthy of adornment, she remains unadorned—like a fresh crescent moon in the sky, veiled by a dark mass of clouds.”
युदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
Outer appearance and inner worth can diverge: true virtue (guṇa, audārya) may remain ‘unadorned’ due to circumstance. The verse invites ethical attention to hidden suffering and to valuing character over display.
Yudhiṣṭhira describes a virtuous woman whose natural beauty and dignity are evident, yet she is without ornaments—using the image of a new moon’s crescent obscured by dark clouds to convey restrained radiance and distress.