Shloka 9
अक्षहृदय-विद्या-प्रदानम्
Transmission of Akṣa-hṛdaya; Kali’s Exit and the Bibhītaka Refuge
रहिता भर्तभिश्चैव न कुप्यन्ति कदाचन । प्राणांश्वारित्रकवचान् धारयन्ति वरस्त्रिय:,'श्रेष्ठ नारियाँ अपने पतियोंसे परित्यक्त होनेपर भी कभी क्रोध नहीं करतीं। वे सदाचाररूपी कवचसे आवृत प्राणोंको धारण करती हैं
rahitā bhartṛbhiś caiva na kupyanti kadācana | prāṇān vāritrakavacān dhārayanti varastriyaḥ ||
Bṛhadaśva said: “Even when abandoned by their husbands, noble women do not become angry. Guarded by the armor of good conduct, they preserve their very lives—holding fast to inner restraint and virtue.”
बृहदश्च उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse praises kṣamā (forbearance) and sadācāra (good conduct) as a protective ‘armor’: true nobility is shown by restraint and ethical steadiness even under personal injury such as abandonment.
Bṛhadaśva is speaking in the Vana Parva and offers a moral observation about exemplary women: despite being left by their husbands, they do not succumb to anger, but sustain themselves through disciplined conduct and inner control.