Shloka 42
धृतराष्ट्रस्य पाण्डवेषु प्रीति-वृत्तान्तः | Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Affectionate Disposition toward the Pāṇḍavas
यो5हं भवन्न्तं दुःखार्तमुपवासकृशं भूशम् । जिताहारं क्षितिशयं न विन्दे भ्रातृभि: सह,आप दुःखसे आतुर और उपवास करनेके कारण अत्यन्त दुर्बल होकर पृथ्वीपर शयन कर रहे हैं तथा भोजनपर भी संयम कर लिया है और मैं भाइयोंसहित आपकी इस अवस्थाका पता ही न पा सका
yo 'haṁ bhavantaṁ duḥkhārtaṁ upavāsa-kṛśaṁ bhūśam | jitāhāraṁ kṣitiśayaṁ na vinde bhrātṛbhiḥ saha ||
Yudhiṣṭhira dijo: «No pude hallarte—aunque te busqué junto con mis hermanos—cuando estabas afligido por el dolor, consumido por el ayuno, tendido sobre la tierra desnuda y viviendo con severa restricción en el alimento. El no haber sabido de tu estado es, en sí mismo, motivo de remordimiento».
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights ethical responsibility toward elders and dependents: even a righteous king must remain vigilant to others’ suffering. It also frames fasting, restraint, and sleeping on the ground as marks of ascetic hardship that demand compassionate response rather than neglect.
Yudhiṣṭhira addresses an honored person who has withdrawn into severe austerity—fasting, food-restraint, and sleeping on the earth—while burdened by grief. He laments that he and his brothers could not locate or learn of this condition in time.