Shloka 14

Devanagari script

वैशम्पायन उवाच एतच्छुत्वा व्यवसितो निकृतिं समुपाश्रित: । जितमित्येव शकुनिर्युधिष्ठिरमभाषत,वैशम्पायनजी कहते हैं--जनमेजय! यह सुनकर पुनः शठताका आश्रय लेनेवाले शकुनिने अपनी ही जीतका निश्चय करके युधिष्ठिस्से कहा--“लो, यह दाँव भी मैंने जीत लिया”

Transliteration

Vaiśampāyana uvāca: etac chrutvā vyavasito nikṛtiṁ samupāśritaḥ | jitam ity eva Śakunir Yudhiṣṭhiram abhāṣata ||

Translation

Vaiśampāyana berkata: Mendengar itu, Śakuni—yang telah bertekad dan sekali lagi bersandar pada tipu daya—berkata kepada Yudhiṣṭhira, seolah-olah keputusan sudah pun muktamad: “Aku menang.”

Word by Word

वैशम्पायनःVaiśampāyana

उवाचsaid

एतत्this

श्रुत्वाhaving heard

व्यवसितःresolved, determined

निकृतिम्deceit, trickery

समुपाश्रितःhaving resorted to

जितम्won; (it is) won

इतिthus

एवindeed, just

शकुनिःŚakuni

युधिष्ठिरम्Yudhiṣṭhira

अभाषतspoke (to), addressed

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

Śakuni

Yudhiṣṭhira

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the ethical collapse of a contest when one party knowingly relies on nikṛti (fraud). It contrasts Yudhiṣṭhira’s dharma-bound vulnerability with Śakuni’s deliberate adharma, showing how deceit can manufacture ‘victory’ while corroding justice.

What is happening in the narrative?

After hearing the preceding development in the dice-game, Śakuni becomes firmly determined and again takes recourse to deception. He then tells Yudhiṣṭhira, in effect, “I have won,” pressing the game forward under a presumption of victory.