Shloka 6
स्त्रीपर्व १: धृतराष्ट्रशोकः संजयाश्वासनं च
Strī Parva 1: Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Lament and Saṃjaya’s Consolation
कि शोचसि महाराज नास्ति शोके सहायता । अक्षौहिण्यो हताश्चाष्टी दश चैव विशाम्पते,“महाराज! आप क्यों शोक कर रहे हैं? इस शोकमें जो आपकी सहायता कर सके, आपका दु:ख बँटा ले, ऐसा भी तो कोई नहीं बच गया है। प्रजानाथ! इस युद्धमें अठारह अक्षौहिणी सेनाएँ मारी गयी हैं
ki śocasi mahārāja nāsti śoke sahāyatā | akṣauhiṇyo hatāś cāṣṭī daśa caiva viśāmpate ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “Why do you grieve, O great king? In this grief there is no helper left—no one remains who can share or lessen your sorrow. O lord of the people, in this war eighteen akṣauhiṇīs of armies have been slain.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the stark loneliness and helplessness of grief after catastrophic loss: when nearly all supports are gone, lamentation finds no external aid. It also frames sorrow within the ethical reality of war’s immense, irreversible destruction.
Vaiśampāyana addresses the bereaved king in the wake of the great war, questioning his continued lament and reminding him that eighteen akṣauhiṇīs have been annihilated—signaling the scale of loss and the absence of remaining companions who could share his sorrow.