Shloka 7
दमयन्त्या वणिजां सार्थगमनम्, हस्तियूथविप्लवः, चेदिराजपुरप्रवेशश्च
Damayantī joins a caravan; elephant-herd catastrophe; entry into Cedi
दमयन्त्यपि कल्याणी निद्रयापहता तत: । सहसा दुःखमासाद्य सुकुमारी तपस्विनी,सुकुमारी तपस्विनी कल्याणमयी दमयन्ती भी सहसा दुःखमें पड़ गयी थी। वहाँ आनेपर उसे भी निद्राने घेर लिया
damayanty api kalyāṇī nidrayāpahatā tataḥ | sahasā duḥkham āsādya sukumārī tapasvinī ||
Bṛhadaśva said: Even Damayantī—noble and auspicious—was then overcome by sleep. Having suddenly fallen into distress, that delicate, ascetic woman succumbed to slumber there as well. The passage underscores how suffering and exhaustion can overpower even the virtuous, and it evokes compassion rather than blame for human vulnerability in adversity.
बृहदश्च उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights that intense hardship and fatigue can overwhelm even the virtuous and disciplined; it encourages empathy and a dharmic, non-judgmental view of human limits in suffering.
Bṛhadaśva narrates that Damayantī, already struck by sudden misfortune, is overtaken by sleep as well—marking a moment of exhaustion and vulnerability within her ordeal.