Shloka 46

धृतराष्ट्रस्य मूर्च्छा—व्यासोपदेशः

Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Collapse and Vyāsa’s Counsel

Devanagari script

तुम्हें बारंबार शोकसे संतप्त और मोहित होते जानकर राजा युधिष्छिर अपने प्राणोंका भी परित्याग कर देंगे |। कृपालुर्नित्यशो वीरस्तिर्यग्योनिगतेष्वपि । स कथं त्वयि राजेन्द्र कृपां नैव करिष्यति,राजेन्द्र! वीर युधिष्ठिर पशु-पक्षी आदि योनिके प्राणियोंपर भी सदा दयाभाव बनाये रखते हैं; फिर तुमपर वे कैसे दया नहीं करेंगे?

Transliteration

tvāṁ bāraṁbāraṁ śokasaṁtaptam mohitam ca jñātvā rājā yudhiṣṭhiraḥ svaprāṇān api parityakṣyati | kṛpālur nityaśo vīras tiryagyonigateṣv api | sa kathaṁ tvayi rājendra kṛpāṁ naiva kariṣyati ||

Translation

Knowing that you are again and again scorched by grief and overcome by delusion, King Yudhiṣṭhira would even abandon his own life. Ever compassionate, that heroic man maintains kindness even toward creatures born in animal and bird wombs; how, then, O best of kings, would he not show compassion to you? The speech frames Yudhiṣṭhira’s dharma as steadfast mercy, warning that another’s uncontrolled sorrow can become an ethical burden that harms the righteous as well.

Word by Word

• {'tvām': 'you (accusative singular)', 'bāraṁbāram': 'again and again, repeatedly', 'śoka': 'grief, sorrow', 'saṁtapta': 'burned, afflicted, tormented', 'mohita': 'deluded, bewildered, overcome by confusion', 'jñātvā': 'having known, having understood', 'rājā': 'king', 'yudhiṣṭhiraḥ': 'Yudhiṣṭhira (eldest Pāṇḍava)', 'prāṇān': 'life-breaths

• life', 'api': 'even, also', 'parityakṣyati': 'will abandon, will give up', 'kṛpāluḥ': 'compassionate, merciful', 'nityaśaḥ': 'always, continually', 'vīraḥ': 'hero, brave man', 'tiryak': 'animal (non-human creature)', 'yoni': 'womb

• species', 'gateṣu': 'in those who have gone into / are situated in (locative plural)', 'tiryagyonigateṣu': 'among beings born as animals/birds and other non-human species', 'saḥ': 'he', 'katham': 'how?', 'tvayi': 'toward you

• in your case (locative singular)', 'rājendra': 'O lord of kings

• O best of kings (vocative)', 'kṛpām': 'compassion, pity, grace', 'na eva': 'not at all, certainly not', 'kariṣyati': 'will do, will show'}

Speaker

व्यास उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vyāsa
• Yudhiṣṭhira

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights compassion (kṛpā) as a defining mark of dharma: Yudhiṣṭhira’s mercy extends even to non-human creatures, so it must certainly extend to a fellow king. It also cautions that persistent, uncontrolled grief can endanger others—so one should seek steadiness for the sake of oneself and the righteous around oneself.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vyāsa addresses a grieving king (rājendra), pointing out that Yudhiṣṭhira, seeing him repeatedly overwhelmed by sorrow and delusion, might even renounce his own life. Vyāsa reassures that Yudhiṣṭhira is inherently compassionate and will not withhold kindness from him.