Shloka 3

Gandhārī’s Lament for Bhūriśravas and Śakuni

Book 11, Chapter 24

Devanagari script

असौ हि भूरिश्रवसो माता शोकपरिप्लुता । आश्वासयति भर्तारें सोमदत्तमनिन्दिता,उधर वे शोकमें डूबी हुई भूरिश्रवाकी सती साध्वी माता अपने पतिको मानो आश्वासन देती हुई कहती हैं--

Transliteration

asau hi bhūriśravaso mātā śokapariplutā | āśvāsayati bhartāraṃ somadattam aninditā ||

Translation

Vaiśampāyana said: Overwhelmed by grief, the blameless mother of Bhūriśravas spoke as though to console her husband Somadatta—seeking to steady him amid the sorrow brought by the war’s losses.

Word by Word

• असौ: this/that (woman)
• असौ: Karta
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: असद्/अदस् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Deictic pronoun (pronominal adverb), referring to 'she/that (woman) here/there'

• हि: indeed/for
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: हि
• Form: Particle

• भूरिश्रवसः: of Bhūriśravas
• भूरिश्रवसः: Sambandha
• Type: Noun
• Root: भूरिश्रवस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Singular

• माता: mother
• माता: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: मातृ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• शोक-परिप्लुता: overwhelmed/engulfed by grief
• शोक-परिप्लुता: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: परि+प्लु (धातु) → परिप्लुत (कृदन्त) / शोक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• आश्वासयति: comforts/encourages
• आश्वासयति: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: आ + √श्वस् (causative: आश्वासयति)
• Form: Present tense (Lat), Parasmaipada, 3rd person, Singular

• भर्तारम्: husband
• भर्तारम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: भर्तृ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• सोमदत्तम्: Somadatta
• सोमदत्तम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: सोमदत्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• अनिन्दिता: blameless/irreproachable
• अनिन्दिता: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अनिन्दित (प्रातिपदिक; past passive participle used adjectivally)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• Bhūriśravas
• Somadatta
• Bhūriśravas’s mother

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Even in overwhelming grief, dharmic conduct includes offering steadiness and reassurance to others. The verse highlights compassionate restraint: sorrow is acknowledged, yet one seeks to support family and uphold dignity.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the aftermath of the Kurukṣetra war, Bhūriśravas’s mother—herself submerged in sorrow—addresses her husband Somadatta, speaking in a consoling manner as part of the broader lamentations and moral reflections of the Strī Parva.