Shloka 41

Vyāsa’s Inquiry into Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Tapas and the Identification of Vidura with Dharma

Devanagari script

उपरोधो भवेदेवमस्माकं तपस: कृते । त्वत्स्नेहपाशबद्धा च हीयेयं तपस: परात्‌

Transliteration

uparodho bhaved evam asmākaṁ tapasaḥ kṛte | tvatsnehapāśabaddhā ca hīyeyaṁ tapasaḥ parāt ||

Translation

Waiśampāyana berkata: “Jika keadaan tetap demikian, itu akan menjadi penghalang bagi tapa kami. Terbelenggu oleh jerat kasihmu, ia akan merosot—menjauh dari jalan tapa yang lebih luhur.”

Word by Word

उपरोधःobstruction, hindrance

भवेत्would be / might become

एवम्thus, in this way

अस्माकम्of us / our

तपसःof austerity / of penance

कृतेfor the sake of

त्वत्-स्नेह-पाश-बद्धाbound by the noose of affection for you

चand

हीयेयम्I would fall away / be diminished

तपसःfrom austerity

परात्from the higher (state) / from what is beyond

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Attachment (sneha) can become a binding ‘noose’ that obstructs tapas; spiritual discipline requires guarding against emotional bonds that pull one away from the higher ascetic aim.

What is happening in the narrative?

The narrator warns that if the situation continues, their ascetic undertaking will be hindered, because a woman—bound by someone’s affection—would weaken in her pursuit of the higher ascetic path.