Shloka 14
कर्कोटक-उपदेशः
Karkoṭaka’s Counsel and Nala’s Concealment
मुहुरुत्पतते बाला मुहुः पतति विह्वला । मुहुरालीयते भीता मुहुः क्रोशति रोदिति,दमयन्ती बार-बार उठती और बार-बार विह्नल होकर गिर पड़ती थी। वह कभी भयभीत होकर छिपती और कभी जोर-जोरसे रोने-चिल्लाने लगती थी
muhur utpatate bālā muhuḥ patati vihvalā | muhur ālīyate bhītā muhuḥ krośati roditī ||
Bṛhadaśva said: “Again and again the young woman would spring up, and again and again, overwhelmed and unsteady, she would collapse. Now frightened, she would hide herself; now she would cry out loudly and weep.” The verse underscores the human cost of separation and fear, portraying Damayantī’s distress as a consequence of disrupted marital and social order, and inviting compassion rather than judgment.
ब॒हृदश्चव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical call to compassion: intense fear and grief can make a person restless and unstable, and such suffering—especially born of separation and insecurity—should be met with empathy and protection rather than blame.
Bṛhadaśva describes Damayantī’s repeated panic reactions—rising, falling, hiding, crying out, and weeping—depicting her acute distress during her ordeal in the wilderness after being separated from her husband Nala.