Shloka 13
या त्वाहं चन्दनादिग्धमपश्य॑ सूर्यवर्चसम् । सा त्वां पड़कमलादिग्धं दृष्टवा मुह्दामि भारत,भारत! जो पहले आपको चन्दनचर्चित एवं सूर्यके समान तेजस्वी देखती रही हूँ, वही मैं आपको कीचड़ एवं मैलसे मलिन देखकर मोहके कारण दु:खित हो रही हूँ
yā tvāhaṃ candanādigdhām apaśyaṃ sūryavarcasaṃ | sā tvāṃ paṅkakamalādigdhaṃ dṛṣṭvā muhyāmi bhārata ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “I who once beheld you anointed with sandal-paste and radiant like the sun—now, seeing you smeared with mud and filth, I am overcome by bewilderment and grieve, O Bhārata.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the moral shock of seeing a noble person reduced from former dignity to hardship, evoking compassion and reflection on impermanence (the instability of fortune) and the ethical duty to respond with empathy rather than indifference.
A speaker recalls having previously seen the addressed person in royal, auspicious condition—anointed with sandal paste and shining like the sun—but now sees him covered with mud and grime, and is overwhelmed with grief and bewilderment at this reversal.