Shloka 6
Vāraṇāvata-praveśa and Jatugṛha-saṃdeha
Entry into Vāraṇāvata and Suspicion of the Lac-House
स्पृहयाम्यद्य निर्वेदात् पुरुषाणां सचक्षुषाम् । अस्त्रहेतो: पराक्रान्तान् ये मे द्रक्ष्यन्ति पुत्रकान्,आज मैं नेत्रहीन होनेके कारण दुःखी होकर, जिनके पास आँँखें हैं, उन मनुष्योंके सुख और सौभाग्यको पानेके लिये तरस रहा हूँ; क्योंकि वे अस्त्र-कौशलका प्रदर्शन करनेके लिये भाँति-भाँतिके पराक्रम करनेवाले मेरे पुत्रोंकोी देखेंगे
spṛhayāmy adya nirvedāt puruṣāṇāṃ sacakṣuṣām | astr-hetoḥ parākrāntān ye me drakṣyanti putrakān ||
Dhṛtarāṣṭra said: “Today, out of dejection, I find myself longing for the good fortune of those men who have sight. For they will behold my sons—displaying their prowess in many ways for the sake of weapons-training—while I, being blind, cannot.”
धृतराष्ट उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how personal limitation (Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s blindness) and attachment to one’s children can generate envy and sorrow. Ethically, it foreshadows how unchecked attachment and longing for status or spectacle can cloud judgment in matters of dharma.
Dhṛtarāṣṭra expresses dejection that, unlike sighted people, he cannot witness his sons’ martial prowess and weapons-training demonstrations. He envies those who will be able to see the display that he, as a blind king, must miss.