Shloka 15
Chapter 10: Survivors Console the Royal Couple and Disperse (धृतराष्ट्र–गान्धारी प्रति निवेदनम्)
परस्पर सुसूक्ष्मेषु शोकेष्वाश्वासयंस्तदा । ता: शोकविद्धदला राजन्नवैक्षन्त परस्परम्
vaiśampāyana uvāca | paraspara susūkṣmeṣu śokeṣv āśvāsayaṃs tadā | tāḥ śokaviddhadalā rājann avaikṣanta parasparam ||
Vaiśampāyana said: Then, as they tried to console one another amid grief so subtle and inward, those women—whose hearts were pierced by sorrow—could not even look at each other, O King. The scene shows how, after catastrophic violence, even compassionate words falter and shared mourning becomes too heavy to meet with a gaze.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the limits of consolation in extreme bereavement: ethical sympathy remains, but trauma can make even mutual support feel impossible. It underscores the human cost of adharma-driven conflict and the need to recognize suffering beyond victory or defeat.
In the Stree Parva’s mourning scenes after the war, the bereaved women attempt to comfort one another. Yet their sorrow is so piercing and inward that they cannot even meet each other’s eyes, conveying collective shock and overwhelming grief.