Mahabharata — Ashramavasika Parva, Shloka 30

अश्रमवासिनां विषादः — Lament in Hastināpura after the Elders’ Forest Withdrawal

Devanagari script

का नु तेषां गतिर्ब्रह्यन्‌ मित्रार्थे ये हता मूृथे

Transliteration

kā nu teṣāṃ gatir brahman mitrārthe ye hatā mṛdhe

Translation

ഹേ ബ്രാഹ്മണാ! സുഹൃത്തിനുവേണ്ടി യുദ്ധത്തിൽ കൊല്ലപ്പെട്ടവർ ഏതു ഗതി പ്രാപിക്കുന്നു?

Word by Word

• का: what (which)
• का: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: किम्
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• नु: indeed/then (interrogative particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: नु

• तेषाम्: of them
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Genitive, Plural

• गतिः: fate/destination
• गतिः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: गति
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• ब्रह्मन्: O Brahmin (sage)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्रह्मन्
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• मित्रार्थे: for a friend's sake / in the cause of a friend
• मित्रार्थे: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: मित्रार्थ
• Form: Masculine, Locative, Singular

• ये: who (those who)
• ये: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: यद्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• हताः: killed/slain
• Type: Verb
• Root: हन्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• मृथे: in battle
• मृथे: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: मृध
• Form: Masculine, Locative, Singular

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• brahman (addressed Brahmin/sage)
• mitra (friend)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse frames an ethical inquiry: sacrifice motivated by loyalty and friendship is not treated as mere violence but as an act with moral intention, prompting reflection on how intention (bhāva) shapes one’s ‘gati’ (spiritual outcome).

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana voices a question to a Brahmin/sage about the posthumous fate of those who died on the battlefield specifically while acting for a friend’s cause, setting up a discussion on merit, duty, and the fruits of self-sacrifice.