Shloka 6
पुनर्द्यूत-समाह्वानम्
Renewed Summons to the Dice-Game and Exile Wager
प्रातिकाग्युवाच यदा नाभूत् कैतवमन्यदस्य तदादेवीत् पाण्डवोडजातशत्रु: । न्यस्ताः पूर्व भ्रातरस्तेन राज्ञा स्वयं चात्मा त्वमथो राजपुत्रि
Prātikāmy uvāca: yadā nābhūt kaitavam anyad asya tadā devīt Pāṇḍavo ’jātaśatruḥ | nyastāḥ pūrvaṁ bhrātaras tena rājñā svayaṁ cātmā tvam atho rājaputri ||
Prātikāmin dit : «Ô princesse, lorsqu’il ne lui resta plus rien pour poursuivre ce jeu trompeur, Ajātaśatru, le roi des Pāṇḍava, se mit à miser. D’abord il engagea ses frères ; puis il s’engagea lui-même ; et enfin, ô princesse, il t’engagea toi aussi.»
वैशग्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical collapse that follows addiction and deceit in gambling: even a dharma-minded king can be driven to violate propriety and human dignity, treating persons as stakes. It sets up the later dharma-inquiry about whether one who has lost himself retains the moral/legal capacity to wager another.
Prātikāmin reports the progression of Yudhiṣṭhira’s losses in the dice match: with no other wealth remaining, he stakes his brothers, then himself, and finally the princess (Draupadī), intensifying the crisis that leads to her summons to the assembly.