Shloka 18
Adhyāya 32: Tāpasānāṃ Darśanaṃ — Ascetics Seek to Identify the Pāṇḍavas
धर्मशीलो महातेजा: कुरूणां हितकृत् तथा । ततः प्रोवाच ता: सर्वा: क्षत्रिया निहतेश्वरा:
dharmaśīlo mahātejāḥ kurūṇāṃ hitakṛt tathā | tataḥ provāca tāḥ sarvāḥ kṣatriyā nihateśvarāḥ ||
Vaiśampāyana berkata: Kemudian resi yang berjiwa agung lagi bercahaya—teguh dalam dharma dan sentiasa bertindak demi kebajikan kaum Kuru—menyapa semua wanita Kṣatriya yang suami mereka telah gugur. Berdiri di dalam air, baginda menuturkan kata-kata yang membimbing para balu itu ke jalan yang mereka dambakan, menambat dukacita mereka pada tekad yang selaras dengan dharma, serta mengarahkannya menuju pertemuan semula dengan suami di alam yang telah ditentukan.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds dharmic leadership in a time of collective grief: a righteous, luminous guide acts for the welfare of the Kuru community by giving purposeful counsel to those devastated by war, redirecting sorrow toward a disciplined, value-guided course.
After the destruction of the Kuru lords, the widowed Kṣatriya women are addressed by a dharma-centered, radiant figure who speaks to them as a group, setting the stage for their subsequent action described in the surrounding passage (their wish to follow their husbands’ path and the ritual act connected with the river).