Shloka 68

Devanagari script

सो5भिवाद्य कृपं राजा कृत्वा चापि प्रदक्षिणम्‌ । उवाच दुर्धर्षतमं वाक्‍्यं वाक्यविदां वर:,उन्हें नमस्कार करके उनकी परिक्रमा करनेके पश्चात्‌ वक्ताओंमें श्रेष्ठ राजा युधिष्ठिरने दुर्धर्ष वीर कृपाचार्यसे कहा--

Transliteration

so ’bhivādya kṛpaṃ rājā kṛtvā cāpi pradakṣiṇam | uvāca durdharṣatamaṃ vākyaṃ vākyavidāṃ varaḥ ||

Translation

Après avoir salué Kṛpa avec respect et l’avoir contourné en pradakṣiṇa, le roi Yudhiṣṭhira—le plus accompli des orateurs—s’adressa à l’inébranlable Kṛpācārya en des paroles difficiles à repousser.

Word by Word

सःhe (that king)

अभिवाद्यhaving saluted

कृपम्Kripa (the preceptor)

राजाthe king

कृत्वाhaving done

चand

अपिalso

प्रदक्षिणम्circumambulation (going around to the right)

उवाचsaid

दुर्धर्षतमम्most unassailable / very formidable

वाक्यम्speech, words

वाक्यविदाम्of the knowers of speech / eloquent ones

वरःthe best

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Kṛpa (Kṛpācārya)

Yudhiṣṭhira

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?

Even in the midst of conflict, dharma is upheld through reverence toward elders and teachers; ethical speech and proper conduct (salutation and pradakṣiṇā) frame difficult conversations and decisions.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya narrates that King Yudhiṣṭhira respectfully greets Kṛpācārya and circumambulates him, then speaks to him—setting a formal, dharmic tone before delivering weighty words in the war context.