Shloka 10
Draupadī’s Rebuke of Jayadratha and Dhaumya’s Admonition (Āraṇyaka-parva, Adhyāya 252)
वैशम्पायन उवाच शकुनेस्तु वच: श्रुत्वा दःशासनमवेक्ष्य च
vaiśampāyana uvāca śakunes tu vacaḥ śrutvā duḥśāsanam avekṣya ca
Dijo Vaiśampāyana: Habiendo escuchado las palabras de Śakuni y luego posado la mirada en Duḥśāsana—fue un instante en que el consejo se tornó resolución, cuando la astucia manipuladora buscó un instrumento dispuesto a actuar, presagiando hechos moralmente turbios, movidos por la lealtad de facción más que por el dharma.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how unethical outcomes often begin with speech—counsel that appeals to ambition or resentment—and then move to action by selecting a willing agent. It implicitly warns that listening and assenting to manipulative advice is an early step away from dharma.
The narrator notes a sequence: someone hears Śakuni’s words and then looks toward Duḥśāsana, indicating that Śakuni’s counsel is being taken seriously and that Duḥśāsana is being drawn in as the likely executor of what is being proposed.