Shloka 51
धृतराष्ट्रस्य मूर्च्छा—व्यासोपदेशः
Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Collapse and Vyāsa’s Counsel
महता शोकजालेन प्रणुन्नो$स्मि द्विजोत्तम । नात्मानमवबुध्यामि मुहामानो मुहुर्मुहु:,“विप्रवर! मुझे महान् शोकजालने सब ओरसे जकड़ रखा है। मैं अपने-आपको ही नहीं समझ पा रहा हूँ। मुझे बारंबार मूर्च्छा आ जाती है
mahatā śokajālena praṇunno'smi dvijottama | nātmānam avabudhyāmi muhāmāno muhur muhuḥ ||
Vaiśaṃpāyana said: “O best of Brahmins, I am overwhelmed and driven about by a vast net of grief. I can no longer clearly comprehend even myself; again and again I fall into bewilderment and faintness.”
वैशग्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how overwhelming grief can cloud self-knowledge and judgment. It implicitly urges compassion and patience in the face of trauma, recognizing that ethical discernment (dharma-buddhi) can be temporarily eclipsed by sorrow.
In the Stree Parva’s atmosphere of mourning after the Kurukṣetra war, Vaiśaṃpāyana describes being seized by intense grief, confessing that he cannot steady his mind or even understand himself, repeatedly lapsing into confusion and faintness.