Shloka 22
Adhyāya 14: Sudēṣṇā Sends Sairandhrī to Kīcaka’s House (सुदेष्णा–सैरन्ध्री–कीचक संवादः)
वलीविभड्रचतुरं स्तनभारविनामितम् । कराग्रसम्मितं मध्यं तवेदं तनुमध्यमे
vaiśampāyana uvāca |
valī-vibhaḍra-caturaṁ stana-bhāra-vināmitam |
karāgra-sammitam madhyaṁ tavedaṁ tanumadhyame ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “O slender-waisted one, your waist is so narrow that it can be measured by the span of the fingertips. Adorned by three graceful folds, it appears exceedingly beautiful; and yet, under the weight of your breasts, it bends slightly.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse is primarily descriptive rather than prescriptive: it illustrates a courtly mode of speech that praises physical beauty through poetic measurements and auspicious marks (like the three folds). Ethically, it reflects how admiration and desire can be expressed in refined language within epic narrative, without itself laying down a dharma-rule.
In Virāṭa Parva, the narration includes episodes in which a woman’s appearance is described in ornate, conventional poetic terms. Here the speaker (as reported by Vaiśampāyana) praises a ‘slender-waisted’ woman, emphasizing the narrowness of her waist, the beauty of the three folds, and the slight bend caused by the weight of her breasts.