Shloka 13

Yudhiṣṭhira’s Lament for Karṇa and Renunciation-Oriented Self-Assessment (शोक-प्रलापः / त्याग-प्रवृत्तिः)

Devanagari script

न पृथिव्या सकलया न सुवर्णस्य राशिभि: । न गवाश्वेन सर्वेण ते त्याज्या य इमे हता:

Transliteration

yudhiṣṭhira uvāca |

na pṛthivyā sakalayā na suvarṇasya rāśibhiḥ |

na gavāśvena sarveṇa te tyājyā ya ime hatāḥ |

bahukalyāṇasaṃyuktān icchanti pitaraḥ sutān |

tapasā brahmacaryeṇa satyena ca titikṣayā ||

Translation

ユディシュティラは言った。「全土のためでもなく、黄金の山のためでもなく、ましてや牛馬のすべてのためであっても、ここで斃れた者たちを見捨ててはならぬ。多くの吉祥なる徳を具えた子を求める父たちは、苦行によって、梵行（ブラフマチャリヤ）によって、真実によって、そして忍耐によって、その子を願い求めるのだ。」

Word by Word

• {'yudhiṣṭhira uvāca': 'Yudhiṣṭhira said', 'na ... na ... na': 'not ... nor ... nor (emphatic negation)', 'pṛthivī': 'the earth, kingdom, land', 'sakalā': 'entire, whole', 'suvarṇa': 'gold', 'rāśi': 'heap, mass, accumulation', 'go': 'cow, cattle (wealth)', 'aśva': 'horse (power, royal wealth)', 'sarva': 'all, entire', 'tyājya': 'to be abandoned, to be given up', 'ime': 'these (here, present before us)', 'hata': 'slain, killed', 'bahu': 'many', 'kalyāṇa': 'auspiciousness, welfare, virtue', 'saṃyukta': 'endowed with, joined with', 'icchanti': 'desire, wish for', 'pitaraḥ': 'fathers, ancestors', 'suta': 'son', 'tapas': 'austerity, ascetic discipline', 'brahmacarya': 'celibate discipline

• student-like self-restraint', 'satya': 'truth, truthfulness', 'titikṣā': 'forbearance, patient endurance'}

Speaker

युधिछिर उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Yudhiṣṭhira
• earth (pṛthivī)
• gold (suvarṇa)
• cattle (go)
• horses (aśva)
• fathers/ancestors (pitaraḥ)
• sons (sutāḥ)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Material gain—kingdom, gold, or livestock—cannot justify abandoning moral responsibility toward those who have died. True worth lies in cultivating virtue: austerity, self-restraint, truthfulness, and endurance, which are also the means by which worthy offspring and lasting welfare are sought.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the aftermath of devastating conflict, Yudhiṣṭhira reflects on the ethical cost of violence and wealth-driven ambition. He insists that no worldly prize compensates for the dead and turns the discussion toward the disciplines that produce genuine good—inner restraint and moral conduct.