Mahabharata — Ashramavasika Parva, Shloka 35
अश्रमवासिनां विषादः — Lament in Hastināpura after the Elders’ Forest Withdrawal
वैशम्पायन उवाच तच्छुत्वा विविध तस्य राजर्षे: परिदेवितम् । पुनर्नवीकृत: शोको गान्धार्या जनमेजय
vaiśampāyana uvāca | tac chrutvā vividhāṃ tasya rājarṣeḥ paridevitam | punar navīkṛtaḥ śoko gāndhāryā janamejaya ||
Vaiśampāyana berkata: “Wahai Janamejaya, setelah mendengar ratapan yang beraneka ragam daripada resi-raja itu, Dhṛtarāṣṭra, dukacita Gāndhārī pun bangkit semula, seakan-akan diperbaharui.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the contagious and recurrent nature of grief: hearing intense lamentation can renew sorrow in others. Ethically, it points to the need for mindful speech and compassionate restraint in mourning, since expressions of pain can deepen collective suffering.
Vaiśampāyana narrates to King Janamejaya that Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s varied lamentations were heard, and as a result Gāndhārī’s sorrow, already present from the devastation of her family, became freshly rekindled.
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