Shloka 17
एवमेवेदमित्युक्त्वा धर्मात्मा स नरेश्वर: । शोकसागरमध्यस्थो दध्यौ कारणमाकुल:
evaṁ evेदam ity uktvā dharmātmā sa nareśvaraḥ | śokasāgaramadhyastho dadhyau kāraṇam ākulaḥ || dharmaputro mahābāhur vilalāpa suvistaram ||
ヴァイシャンパーヤナは言った。「そうか——まことに、こうなるべくしてなったのだ」と言い終えると、法に生きる王ユディシュティラは、悲しみの大海のただ中に立つかのように動揺し、原因を思索した。ついで強き腕を持つダルマの子ユディシュティラは久しく嘆き、兄弟たちに降りかかった災厄の背後にある道義の理と隠れた因を求めて、悲痛に身を震わせた。
वैशग्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames suffering not as random but as something that invites ethical introspection: a dharmic king, even in intense grief, turns to reflection on causes—suggesting responsibility, karma, and the search for right understanding amid calamity.
After uttering a resigned acknowledgment—“So it is”—Yudhiṣṭhira is portrayed as submerged in grief. He becomes mentally unsettled and begins to contemplate why this disaster has occurred, then laments at length.