Shloka 236
Rāmopākhyāna—Rāma–Sītā Origins and the Opening of Rāvaṇa’s Genealogy
अनुस्मरंश्व॒ संक्लेशान् न शान्तिमुपयाति स: । राजन्! यह सब सुनकर धर्मपुत्र युधिष्ठिर उद्विग्न हो उठे। वे विचारने लगे--“कर्णका कवच अभेद्य है और उसका पराक्रम भी अद्भुत है।' यह मानकर तथा वनके क्लेशोंका स्मरण करके उन्हें शान्ति नहीं प्राप्त होती थी
anusmaran saṅkleśān na śāntim upayāti saḥ | rājan!
Vaiśampāyana said: “O King, one who keeps recalling past afflictions does not attain peace.” Hearing all this, Dharmaputra Yudhiṣṭhira became deeply agitated. Reflecting that Karṇa’s protective armor was unbreakable and that his prowess was extraordinary, and remembering the hardships of life in the forest, Yudhiṣṭhira could find no calm within himself.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights a psychological-ethical insight: fixation on past suffering (saṅkleśa) obstructs śānti (inner peace). Dharma here includes self-governance—training the mind not to be ruled by fear, grievance, or obsessive recollection.
After hearing the account, Yudhiṣṭhira becomes unsettled. He broods over Karṇa’s seemingly invincible armor and extraordinary valor, and the remembered pains of forest exile intensify his worry, preventing him from attaining calm.