Mahabharata — Stree Parva, Shloka 19
स्त्रीपर्व १: धृतराष्ट्रशोकः संजयाश्वासनं च
Strī Parva 1: Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Lament and Saṃjaya’s Consolation
परिणामश्न वयस: सर्वबन्धुक्षयश्व मे
dhṛtarāṣṭra uvāca | pariṇāmaś ca vayasas sarva-bandhu-kṣayaś ca me | daiva-vaśāc ca me suhṛdāṁ mitrāṇāṁ cāpy antas samupasthitaḥ | bhūmaṇḍale ’smin mayā duḥkhitataro ’nyaḥ kaḥ syāt ||
ທຣິຕຣາດຕຣະ ກ່າວວ່າ: «ຄວາມແປປ່ຽນອັນຫຼີກບໍ່ພົ້ນຂອງວັຍໄດ້ຄອບງຳຂ້າພະເຈົ້າ; ຍາດພີ່ນ້ອງທັງປວງຂອງຂ້າພະເຈົ້າຖືກທຳລາຍໝົດ. ແລະໂດຍອຳນາດແຫ່ງຊະຕາກຳ ແມ່ນແຕ່ຜູ້ປາດຖະນາດີ ແລະມິດສະຫາຍຂອງຂ້າພະເຈົ້າກໍສິ້ນສຸດໄປ. ບອກຂ້າພະເຈົ້າເຖີດ—ໃນພິພົບນີ້ ຈະມີໃຜທຸກທໍລະມານຫນັກກວ່າຂ້າພະເຈົ້າອີກ?»
धृतराष्ट उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the crushing moral and emotional aftermath of adharma-driven conflict: when one’s choices culminate in ruin, even kingship cannot shield one from grief. It also frames suffering through the twin lenses of time (aging) and daiva (fate), prompting reflection on responsibility, impermanence, and the cost of attachment.
In the opening of the Strī Parva, after the catastrophic war, Dhṛtarāṣṭra speaks in despair. He reflects that old age has come upon him and that his entire family line has been destroyed; even his friends and well-wishers are gone. He asks rhetorically who on earth could be more miserable than he.
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