Shloka 40

Ajñātavāsa-saṅkalpaḥ — Yudhiṣṭhira’s Resolve and Dhaumya’s Exempla on Concealment

Devanagari script

सावित्रयुवाच न दूरमेतन्मम भर्तूसंनिधौ मनो हि मे दूरतरं प्रधावति । अथ व्रजन्नेव गिरं समुद्यतां मयोच्यमानां शृणु भूय एव च,सावित्रीने कहा--भगवन्‌! मैं अपने स्वामीके समीप हूँ। इसलिये यह स्थान मेरे लिये दूर नहीं है। मेरा मन तो और भी दूरतक दौड़ लगाता है। आप चलते-चलते ही मेरी कही हुई ये प्रस्तुत बातें पुन: सुनें

Transliteration

sāvitrī uvāca | na dūram etan mama bhartuḥ saṃnidhau mano hi me dūrataram pradhāvati | atha vrajann eva giraṃ samudyatāṃ mayocyamānāṃ śṛṇu bhūya eva ca ||

Translation

Savitri said: “This is not far for me, for I am near my husband. Indeed, my mind runs even farther still. Therefore, even as you go on your way, listen once again to the words I am about to speak.”

Word by Word

• {'sāvitrī uvāca': 'Savitri said', 'na dūram': 'not far', 'etan': 'this (place/point)', 'mama': 'for me / mine', 'bhartuḥ': 'of (my) husband', 'saṃnidhau': 'in the presence/nearby', 'manaḥ': 'mind', 'hi': 'indeed/for', 'me': 'my', 'dūrataram': 'farther, more distant', 'pradhāvati': 'runs forth, hastens', 'atha': 'therefore/then', 'vrajan': 'going, proceeding', 'eva': 'indeed/just', 'giram': 'speech, words', 'samudyatām': 'raised/undertaken

• about to be uttered', 'mayā ucyamānām': 'being spoken by me', 'śṛṇu': 'listen (imperative)', 'bhūyaḥ': 'again, once more', 'eva ca': 'and indeed'}

Speaker

यम उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Savitri
• her husband (Satyavan, implied)
• Yama (contextual speaker in the chapter)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Steadfast devotion aligned with dharma gives inner strength: Savitri’s closeness to her husband is not merely physical but moral and mental, and her disciplined speech seeks to move even Yama through truth, restraint, and righteous intent.

What is happening in the narrative?

As Yama proceeds after taking Satyavan’s life, Savitri follows without fear. She declares that no distance is great when one is devoted to one’s husband, and she asks Yama to keep listening as she continues her reasoned, dharmic appeal.