Shloka 33

Uttarā-Pratigrahaṇa and Abhimanyu–Uttarā Vivāha

Virāṭa-parva, Adhyāya 67

Devanagari script

क्षुत्पिपासापरिश्रान्ता विदेशस्था विचेतस: । जब कौरव-दलके लोग चले गये या इधर-उधर सब दिशाओंमें भाग गये, उस समय बहुत-से कौरवसैनिक जो घने जंगलमें छिपे हुए थे, वहाँसे निकलकर डरते-डरते अर्जुनके पास आये। उनके मनमें भय समा गया था। वे भूखे-प्यासे और थके-माँदे थे। परदेशमें होनेके कारण उनके हृदयकी व्याकुलता और बढ़ गयी थी। वे उस समय केश खोले और हाथ जोड़े हुए खड़े दिखायी दिये

Transliteration

kṣutpipāsāpariśrāntā videśasthā viceṭasaḥ | yadā kaurava-dalake lokāś calitā vā diśo diśaḥ palāyitāḥ, tadā bahavaḥ kaurava-sainikā gahana-vane nihitāḥ tataḥ nirgatyārjunaṃ prati bhayāt bhayāt samupāyayuḥ | teṣāṃ hṛdaye bhayaṃ samāviśat | te kṣudhārditāḥ pipāsitāś ca pariśrāntāś ca | videśasthitvāt teṣāṃ mānasī vyākulatā bhūya eva vardhitā | te tasmin kāle muktakeśā añjalibaddhahastāś ca tiṣṭhanta iti dṛśyante |

Translation

Dijo Vaiśampāyana: Cuando las filas de los Kaurava se hubieron retirado o se dispersaron huyendo en todas direcciones, muchos soldados kaurava que se habían ocultado en la espesura del bosque salieron y, temblando de miedo, se acercaron a Arjuna. El temor se apoderó de sus corazones. Estaban hambrientos, sedientos y exhaustos; y el hallarse en tierra extraña no hacía sino acrecentar su angustia interior. Entonces se les vio de pie, con el cabello suelto y las manos juntas en súplica: imagen de derrota e indefensión que, sin decirlo, reconoce el poder del vencedor y pide amparo antes que más violencia.

Word by Word

क्षुत्hunger

पिपासाthirst

परिश्रान्ताःexhausted, worn out

विदेशस्थाःstaying in a foreign land

विचेतसःbewildered, distraught

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

Arjuna

Kaurava soldiers

Kaurava army

dense forest

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights an ethical moment after conflict: the defeated, frightened enemy seeks refuge with joined hands. It implicitly calls attention to the victor’s dharma—restraint, protection of the helpless, and avoidance of needless cruelty once the opponent is broken and supplicating.

What is happening in the narrative?

After the Kaurava forces scatter and flee, some soldiers who had been hiding in a dense forest emerge. Hungry, thirsty, exhausted, and mentally shaken—made worse by being in an unfamiliar land—they approach Arjuna in fear, standing with loosened hair and folded hands as supplicants.