Shloka 8
Vyāsa’s Counsel to Dhṛtarāṣṭra on Restraining Duryodhana (व्यास-धृतराष्ट्र-उपदेशः)
इस प्रकार श्रीमह्या भारत वनपवके अन्तर्गत अरण्यपर्वमें व्यासवाक्यविषयक आठवाँ अध्याय पूरा हुआ,इन्द्र रवाच किमिदं रोदिषि शुभे कच्चित् क्षेमं दिवौकसाम् | मानुषेष्वथ वा गोषु नैतदल्पं भविष्यति इन्द्रने पूछा--शुभे! तुम क्यों इस तरह रो रही हो? देवलोकवासियोंकी कुशल तो है न? मनुष्यों तथा गौओंमें तो सब लोग कुशलसे हैं न? तुम्हारा यह रोदन किसी अल्प कारणसे नहीं हो सकता?
indra uvāca: kim idaṁ rodiṣi śubhe? kaccit kṣemaṁ divaukasām? mānuṣeṣv atha vā goṣu naitad alpaṁ bhaviṣyati.
Indra said: “Auspicious one, why do you weep like this? Is all well with the dwellers of heaven? Or among human beings and among the cattle—are they safe and unharmed? This kind of lament cannot arise from a trivial cause.”
व्यास उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames righteous concern as universal: a leader’s (or deity’s) first question is about the welfare of all realms—gods, humans, and even cattle—implying that true dharma includes protection and well-being across the whole order of life.
Indra addresses an unnamed woman (called “śubhe”) who is weeping. He asks the reason for her grief and probes whether any calamity has befallen heaven, humanity, or the cattle, concluding that such intense crying must have a serious cause.