Shloka 45
देवसत्रे मृत्युनिरोधः, पूर्वेन्द्राणां मानुषावतरणम्, द्रौपदी-वरकथनम्
Suspension of Death at the Devasatra; Former Indras’ Human Descent; Draupadī’s Boon Etiology
मायान्वितैर्वा रक्षोभि: सुघोरैर्दुढवैरिभि: । विपरीतं मतं जातं व्यासस्यापि महात्मन:,वे ऐसे लगते थे, जैसे पूर्णमासी तिथिको मेघोंकी घटासे निकलकर चन्द्रमा और सूर्य प्रकाशित हो रहे हों। इधर भिक्षाका समय बीत जानेपर भी जब पुत्र नहीं लौटे, तब उनकी माता कुन्तीदेवी स्नेहवश अनेक प्रकारकी चिन्ताओंमें डूबकर उनके विनाशकी आशंका करने लगीं--“कहीं ऐसा तो नहीं हुआ कि धृतराष्ट्रके पुत्रोंने कुरुश्रेष्ठ पाण्डवोंको पहचानकर उनकी हत्या कर डाली हो? अथवा दृढ़तापूर्वक वैरभावको मनमें रखनेवाले महाभयंकर मायावी राक्षसोंने तो मेरे बच्चोंको नहीं मार डाला? क्या महात्मा व्यासके भी निश्चित मतके विपरीत कोई बात हो गयी?”
māyānvitair vā rakṣobhiḥ sughorair dṛḍhavairībhiḥ | viparītaṃ mataṃ jātaṃ vyāsasyāpi mahātmanaḥ ||
Or perhaps some terrifying rākṣasas, skilled in deception and hardened in enmity, have done it. Has something occurred that runs contrary even to the settled judgment of the great-souled Vyāsa? (Thus Kuntī, as time passed and her sons did not return, sank into anxious foreboding about their safety.)
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage highlights how fear and uncertainty can overwhelm even when one trusts wise counsel: māyā (deception) and entrenched enmity create moral and practical danger, and a mother’s dharmic concern for her children surfaces as vigilant anxiety.
As the expected time passes and the sons have not returned, Kuntī imagines possible causes—either the Kauravas recognized and killed the Pāṇḍavas, or fearsome, illusion-wielding rākṣasas harmed them—wondering whether events have turned out contrary even to Vyāsa’s assured judgment.