Shloka 3

Virāṭanagara-nivāsa-nirṇaya

Decision to Reside in Virāṭa’s City

Devanagari script

पतिव्रता महाभागा सतत ब्रह्म॒वादिनी । द्रौपदी च कथं ब्रह्मन्नजज्ञाता द:खितावसत्‌

Transliteration

pativratā mahābhāgā satataṁ brahmavādinī | draupadī ca kathaṁ brahmann ajñātā duḥkhitāvasat ||

Translation

Janamejaya said: “O Brahmin, how did Draupadī—so devoted to her husbands, greatly fortunate, and ever engaged in sacred discourse—remain in concealment and dwell there while afflicted with sorrow? And how, in fear of Duryodhana, did my forefathers the Pāṇḍavas pass their period of living incognito in the city of Virāṭa, enduring hardship?”

Word by Word

• पतिव्रता: devoted to her husband
• पतिव्रता: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पतिव्रत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• महाभागा: most fortunate, highly blessed
• महाभागा: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महाभाग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• सतत: always, constantly
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: सतत (अव्यय)

• ब्रह्मवादिनी: speaker of Brahman/one who speaks of sacred truth
• ब्रह्मवादिनी: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्रह्मवादिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• द्रौपदी: Draupadi
• द्रौपदी: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्रौपदी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)

• कथम्: how?
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: कथम् (अव्यय)

• ब्रह्मन्: O Brahmin (sage)!
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्रह्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• अजज्ञाता: unknown, unrecognized
• अजज्ञाता: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अज्ञात (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• दुःखिता: afflicted, sorrowful
• दुःखिता: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दुःखित (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• अवसत्: dwelt, lived
• Type: Verb
• Root: वस् (धातु)
• Form: Imperfect (लङ्), 3rd, Singular, Parasmaipada

Speaker

जनमेजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Janamejaya
• Brahmin (Vaiśaṁpāyana as addressed)
• Draupadī
• Pāṇḍavas
• Duryodhana
• Virāṭanagara (city of Virāṭa)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse foregrounds dharma under adversity: even the virtuous (patīvratā, brahmavādinī) may face suffering, yet they uphold integrity and restraint. It also highlights the ethical tension between rightful endurance and the necessity of concealment for survival.

What is happening in the narrative?

King Janamejaya asks the narrator-sage how the Pāṇḍavas, fearing discovery by Duryodhana, managed their year of ajñātavāsa in Virāṭa’s city, and specifically how Draupadī—despite sorrow—could remain unrecognized while living there.