Shloka 21

Vyāsa’s Boon-Offer and Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Remorse in the Forest Assembly (आश्रमवासिक पर्व, अध्याय ३६)

Devanagari script

समाविद्धे वने तस्मिन्‌ प्राप्ते व्यसन उत्तमे । निराहारतया राजन्‌ मन्दप्राणविचेष्टित:

Transliteration

samāviddhe vane tasmin prāpte vyasane uttame | nirāhāratayā rājan mandaprāṇaviceṣṭitaḥ ||

Translation

Nārada dit : «Ô roi, lorsque cette forêt fut en flammes et que la plus lourde calamité s’abattit sur eux, lui—privé de nourriture—ne se mouvait plus qu’avec un souffle faible, défaillant.»

Word by Word

समाविद्धेin (the forest) that was pierced/struck (by calamity/fire etc.)

वनेin the forest

तस्मिन्in that

प्राप्तेwhen (it) had come/arrived; upon occurrence

व्यसनेin calamity/misfortune

उत्तमेin the extreme/most severe (one)

निराहारतयाby fasting; due to lack of food

राजन्O king

मन्दप्राणविचेष्टितःone whose movements were feeble, with weakened life-breath

Speaker

नारद उवाच

Characters & Entities

Nārada

King (rājan)

forest (vana)

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 underscores the fragility of embodied life and the inevitability of suffering even for the great; it frames calamity as a moment that tests endurance and detachment, highlighting the ethical gravity of accepting hardship with steadiness.

What is happening in the narrative?

Nārada narrates a crisis: a forest is burning, a severe disaster has struck, and a principal figure is so weakened by lack of food that he can barely move, his life-breath and efforts reduced to a faint minimum.