Shloka 4
संचिन्तयामि कौन्तेयं रहो जिष्णुं जनार्दन । अतीव दुःखभागी स सतत पाण्डुनन्दन:,इसका क्या कारण है? बुद्धिमान् जनार्दन! जब मैं एकान्तमें बैठकर अर्जुनके बारेमें विचार करता हूँ, तब यह जानकर मेरा मन खिन्न हो जाता है कि हमलोगोंमें वे ही सदा सबसे अधिक दु:खके भागी रहे हैं। पाण्डुनन्दन अर्जुन सुखसे वंचित क्यों रहते हैं? यह समझमें नहीं आता
sañcintayāmi kaunteyaṁ raho jiṣṇuṁ janārdana | atīva duḥkhabhāgī sa satataṁ pāṇḍunandanaḥ ||
Yudhiṣṭhira said: “O Janārdana, when I sit in solitude and reflect upon Arjuna—the son of Kuntī, the unconquered hero—I become deeply distressed. For it seems that among us he, the son of Pāṇḍu, has continually been the greatest sharer of sorrow. Why is Arjuna so often deprived of ease and happiness?”
युधिष्ठिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds a dharmic problem: even the most capable and righteous may bear disproportionate suffering. Yudhiṣṭhira’s question invites reflection on the interplay of destiny (daiva), past causes, and present duty—suggesting that virtue does not guarantee comfort, and that endurance and right action remain meaningful even amid recurring hardship.
In the Aśvamedhika context, after the great war, Yudhiṣṭhira speaks to Kṛṣṇa in a reflective mood. Sitting alone, he thinks of Arjuna’s life—marked by repeated trials despite heroism and devotion—and asks Kṛṣṇa to explain why Arjuna seems continually burdened with sorrow more than the others.