Shloka 7

Strī-parva Adhyāya 22 — Gāndhārī’s Battlefield Lament for the Fallen (Āvantya, Bāhlika, Jayadratha, and Duḥśalā)

Devanagari script

पुत्रशोकाभिततप्तेन प्रतिज्ञां चाभिरक्षता । पाकशासनिना संख्ये वार्थक्षत्रि्निपातित:

Transliteration

putraśokābhitatptena pratijñāṁ cābhirakṣatā | pākaśāsaninā saṅkhye vārthakṣatrinipātitaḥ ||

Translation

Vaiśampāyana said: Burnt by grief for his son and intent on keeping his vow, he was struck down in the thick of battle by Pākaśāsana (Indra). The verse underscores how personal sorrow and rigid commitment to a pledge can drive one into fatal confrontation, where even a mighty warrior’s resolve meets the higher force of destiny and divine power.

Word by Word

• पुत्रशोकाभिततप्तेन: by one tormented by grief for (his) son
• पुत्रशोकाभिततप्तेन: Karana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पुत्र-शोक-अभि-तप्त (तप् धातु, क्त)
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Instrumental, Singular

• प्रतिज्ञाम्: a vow, promise
• प्रतिज्ञाम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रतिज्ञा
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• अभिरक्षता: (he) protects/keeps (it)
• Type: Verb
• Root: अभि-रक्ष् (रक्ष् धातु)
• Form: Present (Lat), 3rd, Singular

• पाकशासनिना: by Indra (the chastiser of Pāka)
• पाकशासनिना: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: पाकशासनिन् (इन्द्र)
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Singular

• संख्ये: in battle
• संख्ये: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: संख्या
• Form: Feminine, Locative, Singular

• वार्थक्षत्रिन्: Vārthakṣatrin (proper name)
• वार्थक्षत्रिन्: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: वार्थक्षत्रिन्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• निपातितः: was struck down, was felled
• Type: Verb
• Root: नि-पत् (पत् धातु, णिच्/कर्मणि क्त)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• Indra (Pākaśāsana)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the ethical tension between personal emotion (grief) and adherence to a vow: when sorrow hardens into uncompromising resolve, it can propel one toward destructive choices, and even heroic determination may be overruled by destiny and divine power.

What is happening in the narrative?

A warrior, anguished by the loss of his son yet determined to uphold his pledge, enters battle and is ultimately struck down by Indra (Pākaśāsana), indicating a climactic defeat shaped by both human resolve and divine agency.