Shloka 28

Vyāsa’s Counsel to Yudhiṣṭhira: Pratismṛti-vidyā, Arjuna’s Aśtra-Quest, and the Move to Kāmyaka

Devanagari script

नूनं ते भ्रातर: सर्वे त्वत्कथाभि: प्रजागरे,वीरवर! निश्चय ही आपके चले जानेके बाद आपके सभी भाई जागते समय आपहीके पराक्रमकी चर्चा बार-बार करते हुए अपना मन बहलायेंगे। पार्थ! दीर्घकालके लिये आपके प्रवासी हो जानेपर हमारा मन न तो भोगोंमें लगेगा और न धनमें ही। इस जीवनमें भी कोई रस नहीं रह जायगा। आपके बिना हम इन वस्तुओंसे संतोष नहीं पा सकेंगे। पार्थ! हम सबके सुख-दुःख, जीवन-मरण तथा राज्य-ऐश्वर्य आपपर ही निर्भर हैं। भरतकुलतिलक! कुन्तीकुमार! मैंने आपको विदा दी; आप कल्याणको प्राप्त हों

Transliteration

vaiśampāyana uvāca | nūnaṃ te bhrātaraḥ sarve tvat-kathābhiḥ prajāgare, vīravara! niścayaṃ hi tvad-gamanaṃ kṛtvā te sarve bhrātaraḥ jāgaritāḥ santaḥ punaḥ punaḥ tava parākramam eva kathayiṣyanti manasā ca vinodayiṣyanti | pārtha! dīrgha-kālaṃ tava pravāsaṃ gate 'smākaṃ mano na bhogeṣu na ca dhaneṣu lapiṣyate; asmin jīvite 'pi na kaścid rasaḥ śeṣyate | tvayā vinā vayam etābhiḥ vastubhiḥ santoṣaṃ na prāpsyāmaḥ | pārtha! asmākaṃ sarveṣāṃ sukha-duḥkhe jīvana-maraṇe rājya-aiśvarye ca tvayi eva āyatte | bharata-kula-tilaka! kuntī-kumāra! mayā tvam visṛṣṭaḥ; kalyāṇaṃ prāpnuhi ||

Translation

Dijo Vaiśampāyana: «Sin duda, todos tus hermanos, oh el mejor de los héroes, tras tu partida pasarán las horas de vigilia hablando de ti, una y otra vez, recordando tu valor, y así afirmarán y consolarán su ánimo. Oh Pārtha, cuando hayas partido a un largo destierro, nuestro corazón no hallará deleite en los placeres ni siquiera en la riqueza; la vida misma parecerá perder su sabor. Sin ti no podremos contentarnos con nada de ello. Pues para todos nosotros, dicha y pena, vida y muerte, y la fortuna real y la soberanía dependen sólo de ti. Oh ornamento de la estirpe de Bharata, hijo de Kuntī, te he dado licencia: ve y alcanza el bien.»

Word by Word

नूनम्surely, indeed

तेof you, your

भ्रातरःbrothers

सर्वेall

त्वत्-कथाभिःby/with talk about you

प्रजागरेin wakefulness, while awake

वीरवरO best of heroes

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

Arjuna (Pārtha, Kuntī-kumāra)

Arjuna's brothers (the Pāṇḍavas collectively)

Bharata lineage (Bharata-kula)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The passage underscores the ethical weight of kinship and duty: a hero’s presence sustains not merely material success but the morale and stability of the family. It also implies that pleasures and wealth are secondary when dharma-bound relationships and shared responsibility are strained by exile.

What is happening in the narrative?

A narrator reports words addressed to Arjuna as he departs for a long exile. The speaker predicts that Arjuna’s brothers will stay awake speaking of his valor, and declares that their joy, contentment, and even royal fortune feel dependent on him, before formally granting him leave and wishing him auspiciousness.