Shloka 9

धृतराष्ट्रस्य स्पर्शाभिलाषः — Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Request for Touch and Permission for Tapas

Devanagari script

तथा चारबलं चैव परस्परसमं नृप । विज्ञेयं बहुकालेषु राज्ञा काल उपस्थिते,नरेश्वरर चारबल (दूतोंका बल) भी परस्पर समान ही है। राजाको समय आनेपर अधिक अवसरोंपर इस तत्त्वको समझे रहना चाहिये

Transliteration

tathā cārabalaṃ caiva parasparasamaṃ nṛpa | vijñeyaṃ bahukāleṣu rājñā kāla upasthite ||

Translation

Dhṛtarāṣṭra berkata: “Wahai raja, kekuatan para utusan pun pada kedua pihak pada hakikatnya saling seimbang. Maka, ketika saat penentuan tiba, seorang penguasa hendaknya berkali-kali mengingat asas ini—bahwa daya diplomasi bertumpu pada keseimbangan, kehati-hatian, dan kejernihan menilai waktu, bukan semata-mata pada kekerasan.”

Word by Word

तथाthus, likewise

चारबलम्the force/strength of spies (intelligence agents)

चand

एवindeed, just

परस्परसमम्mutually equal

नृपO king

विज्ञेयम्is to be known/understood

बहुकालेषुon many occasions / at many times

राज्ञाby the king

कालेwhen the time (moment) comes

उपस्थितेhaving arrived / being present

Speaker

धृतराष्ट उवाच

Characters & Entities

Dhṛtarāṣṭra

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?

A ruler should understand that diplomatic and intelligence strength (cārabala) tends to be balanced between rivals; therefore success depends on timely judgment, restraint, and wise use of counsel rather than assuming unilateral advantage.

What is happening in the narrative?

Dhṛtarāṣṭra is offering a reflective counsel on governance: he emphasizes the practical reality of parity in diplomatic resources and urges the king to remember this when critical decisions and turning points arise.