Shloka 9
धर्मपुत्रो महाबाहुर्विललाप सुविस्तरम् । अर्जुन मरे पड़े थे; उनके धनुष-बाण इधर-उधर बिखरे थे। भीमसेन और नकुल-सहदेव भी प्राणरहित हो निश्रेष्ट हो गये थे। इन सबको देखकर युधिष्ठिर गरम-गरम लंबी साँसें खींचने लगे। उनके नेत्रोंसे शोकके आँसू उमड़कर उन्हें भिगो रहे थे। अपने समस्त भ्राताओंको इस प्रकार धराशायी हुए देख महाबाह धर्मपुत्र युधिष्ठिर गहरी चिन्तामें डूब गये और देरतक विलाप करते रहे-- “धनंजय! जब तुम्हारा जन्म हुआ था, उस समय देवताओंने भी कहा था कि “कुन्ती! तुम्हारा यह पुत्र सहस्रनेत्रधारी इन्द्रसे किसी बातमें कम न होगा।' उत्तर पारियात्र पर्वतपर सब प्राणियोंने तुम्हारे विषयमें यही कहा था कि “ये अर्जुन शीघ्र ही पाण्डवोंकी खोयी हुई राजलक्ष्मीको पुनः लौटा लायेंगे। युद्धमें कोई भी इनपर विजय पानेवाला न होगा और ये भी किसीको परास्त किये बिना न रहेंगे”
vaiśaṃpāyana uvāca | dharmaputro mahābāhur vilalāpa suvistaram |
Vaiśaṃpāyana said: The mighty-armed Dharmaputra (Yudhiṣṭhira) lamented at length. Seeing Arjuna fallen as if dead, his bow and arrows scattered, and Bhīmasena as well as Nakula and Sahadeva lying lifeless and inert, Yudhiṣṭhira drew hot, heavy breaths; tears of grief welled up and drenched him. Overwhelmed by anxiety at the sight of all his brothers struck down, he mourned for a long time: “Dhanañjaya! At your birth even the gods declared, ‘Kuntī, this son of yours will be in no way inferior to Indra of the thousand eyes.’ And on the northern Pāriyātra mountain all beings spoke of you thus: ‘This Arjuna will swiftly restore the lost royal fortune of the Pāṇḍavas. In battle none will conquer him, nor will he refrain from conquering others.’”
वैशग्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage highlights the ethical tension between dharma (steadfastness, responsibility) and human grief: even the righteous Yudhiṣṭhira is shaken by loss, yet he frames his sorrow through remembrance of Arjuna’s divinely affirmed duty and capacity to restore justice and royal order.
Vaiśaṃpāyana narrates Yudhiṣṭhira’s intense lament upon seeing Arjuna and the other brothers apparently dead, with weapons scattered. In his mourning he recalls prophecies and public acclaim about Arjuna’s birth and destiny to recover the Pāṇḍavas’ lost sovereignty and remain unconquered in battle.