Shloka 11
Dvaītavana: Brahmaghoṣa, Rṣi-saṅgha, and Baka Dālbhyā’s Upadeśa to Yudhiṣṭhira
दान्तं यच्च सभामध्य आसन रत्नभूषितम् | दृष्टवा कुशवृषीं चेमां शोको मां प्रदहत्ययम्,सभाभवनमें जो रत्नजटित हाथीदाँतका सिंहासन है, उसका स्मरण करके जब मैं इस कुशकी चटाईको देखती हूँ, तब शोक मुझे दग्ध किये देता है
dāntaṃ yac ca sabhāmadhye āsanaṃ ratnabhūṣitam | dṛṣṭvā kuśavṛṣīṃ cemāṃ śoko māṃ pradahaty ayam ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “When I remember that jewel-adorned seat of ivory that stood in the midst of the royal assembly, and then look upon this simple mat of kuśa-grass, this sorrow burns me to the core.” The contrast between former royal splendor and present austerity underscores the moral weight of loss and exile, and how attachment to status and comfort intensifies grief when fortune turns.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical and psychological truth that attachment to former power and luxury sharpens suffering when circumstances change. Remembering courtly splendor while living in austerity makes grief ‘burn’; the implied counsel is steadiness and detachment in adversity, aligning one’s mind with dharma rather than with status.
A speaker contrasts a past scene of royal life—an ivory, jewel-decorated seat in the assembly hall—with the present reality of sitting on a simple kuśa-grass mat. This stark comparison expresses the pain of downfall/exile and the emotional force of memory.