Shloka 5

Rathaghoṣa–Saṃjñāna: Damayantī’s Inference and the Dispatch of the Envoy (Āraṇyaka-parva, Adhyāya 71)

Devanagari script

नृशंसं बत वैदर्भी भर्तृकामा तपस्विनी । मया क्षुद्रेण निकृता कृपणा पापबुद्धिना,“तपस्विनी एवं दीन विदर्भराजकुमारीको मुझ नीच एवं पापबुद्धि पुरुषने धोखा दिया है, इसीलिये वह ऐसा निष्ठछुर कार्य करनेको उद्यत हो गयी। संसारमें स्त्रीका चंचल स्वभाव प्रसिद्ध है। मेरा अपराध भी भयंकर है। सम्भव है मेरे प्रवाससे उसका हार्दिक स्नेह कम हो गया हो, अतः वह ऐसा भी कर ले

Transliteration

nṛśaṃsaṃ bata vaidarbhī bhartṛkāmā tapasvinī | mayā kṣudreṇa nikṛtā kṛpaṇā pāpabuddhinā ||

Translation

ブリハダシュヴァは語った。「ああ、なんと残酷な道へ、ヴィダルバの姫君—夫を慕い、苦行に身を捧げる者—は追い立てられたことか。卑小にして罪深き心をもつこの私に欺かれ、あの哀れな女は辱めを受けたのだ。」

Word by Word

नृशंसम्cruel (act/thing)

बतalas/indeed (exclamation)

वैदर्भीthe princess of Vidarbha (Damayantī)

भर्तृकामाdesiring her husband

तपस्विनीascetic woman

मयाby me

क्षुद्रेणby (one who is) base/mean

निकृताdeceived/cheated

कृपणाwretched/pitiable

पापबुद्धिनाby (one) of sinful mind

Speaker

बृहृदश्च उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bṛhadaśva

Vaidarbhī (Damayantī)

Vidarbha

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse foregrounds moral accountability: the speaker recognizes that deceit and petty-minded wrongdoing inflict suffering on the innocent, and that acknowledging one’s fault is the first step toward ethical repair.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bṛhadaśva laments the plight of the Vidarbha princess (Damayantī), describing her as devoted and husband-longing, and confesses that his own deceitful, sinful conduct has wronged her and pushed her toward a harsh course of action.