Shloka 5
धृतराष्ट्रस्य उपालम्भः तथा पाण्डव-समाश्वासनम् | Dhṛtarāṣṭra Reproved and the Pāṇḍavas Consoled
स गज्जमनु वृन्दानि स्त्रीणां भरतसत्तम । कुररीणामिवार्तानां क्रोशन्तीनां ददर्श ह,भरतश्रेष्ठ! गंगातटपर पहुँचकर युधिष्ठिरने कुररीकी तरह आर्तस्वरसे विलाप करती हुई स्त्रियोंके कई दल देखे
sa gajjam anu vṛndāni strīṇāṃ bharatasattama | kurarīṇām ivārtānāṃ krośantīnāṃ dadarśa ha ||
Vaiśampāyana said: O best of the Bharatas, he saw groups of women wailing aloud—crying out in anguish like distressed ospreys—lamenting in piercing voices. The scene underscores the human cost of war: the battlefield’s aftermath is measured not only in fallen warriors but in the grief borne by those left behind.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical and human consequences of war: victory and heroism are overshadowed by the suffering of innocents, urging compassion and sober reflection on dharma in the wake of violence.
The narrator describes the protagonist witnessing many groups of women crying out in anguish, their lament compared to the plaintive cries of kurarī birds—an image that intensifies the atmosphere of bereavement in the Strī Parva.