Shloka 51
Pāṇḍu’s Marriages, Conquests, and Triumphal Return (पाण्डोर्विवाह-विजय-प्रत्यागमनम्)
भरतानां समुच्छेदो व्यक्त मद्धाग्यसंक्षयात् व्यथितां मां च सम्प्रेक्ष्य पितृवंशं च पीडितम्
vaiśampāyana uvāca |
bharatānāṃ samucchedo vyaktaṃ madbhāgyasaṃkṣayāt |
vyathitāṃ māṃ ca samprekṣya pitṛvaṃśaṃ ca pīḍitam ||
Vaiśampāyana berkata: “Dengan susutnya tuahku sendiri, lenyapnya garis Bharata kini tampak nyata. Melihat aku berdukacita dan keturunan leluhur terhimpit, Bhīṣma telah mengusulkan suatu jalan demi pertumbuhan keluarga ini. Wahai anakku, keberhasilan nasihat itu bergantung padamu. Laksanakan seperti yang Bhīṣma sarankan dan bawalah aku ke keadaan di mana aku dapat menyaksikan tercapainya hasratku yang paling diidamkan.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage foregrounds the dharmic responsibility to protect the continuity and well-being of one’s lineage and kingdom. Personal misfortune is framed as a public crisis when it threatens the ancestral line; therefore wise counsel (here, Bhīṣma’s) and cooperative action are presented as ethical necessities for restoring stability.
A speaker laments that the Bharata line is heading toward extinction due to the collapse of his own fortune. Observing both his distress and the suffering of the ancestral lineage, Bhīṣma proposes a plan to increase the family. The addressed ‘daughter’ is told that the plan’s success depends on her, and she is urged to act so that the speaker may see his desired goal fulfilled.