Shloka 9
धृतराष्ट्रस्य पाण्डवेषु प्रीति-वृत्तान्तः | Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Affectionate Disposition toward the Pāṇḍavas
ताविमौ चन्दनेनाक्तौ चन्दनाहाौं च मे भुजी
tāv imau candanenāktau candanāhāu ca me bhujī
वैशम्पायन बोले— “मेरी ये दोनों भुजाएँ अब चन्दन से लिप्त हैं और चन्दन की सुगन्ध से सुवासित हैं।”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights a moral and psychological transition: the same human faculties (symbolized by the arms—capacity for action and power) can be redirected from force and worldly assertion toward restraint, purification, and a dharmic settling of the self after conflict.
Vaiśampāyana narrates a moment where the speaker’s arms are described as anointed with sandalwood and fragrant, signaling a calmer, more ritual-pure or ascetic atmosphere in the forest-life context of Āśramavāsika, contrasting with earlier martial identity.