Shloka 8
सभा-पर्यवसान-प्रस्थानवचनम् | Counsel at the Point of Departure
कि नवतः कृपणं भूयो यदहं स्त्री सती शुभा । सभामध्यं विगाहेउद्य क्व नु धर्मो महीक्षिताम्
kiṁ navataḥ kṛpaṇaṁ bhūyo yad ahaṁ strī satī śubhā | sabhāmadhyaṁ vigāheyaṁ kva nu dharmo mahīkṣitām ||
Apakah ada kesengsaraan yang lebih menyayat daripada ini—bahawa aku, seorang wanita yang berbudi dan membawa berkat, seorang isteri setia, dipaksa masuk ke tengah balairung diraja? Ke manakah perginya dharma para raja pada hari ini?
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse indicts the collapse of royal dharma: rulers are obligated to protect justice and the dignity of the vulnerable, and a court that tolerates coercion and public humiliation has abandoned its moral purpose.
In the context of the dice-game aftermath, a virtuous woman is brought into the royal assembly against her will and publicly questions where the kings’ sense of righteousness and duty has gone.