Shloka 35

Draupadī’s Exhortation on Rājadharma and Daṇḍa (द्रौपद्याः राजधर्मोपदेशः)

Devanagari script

साहं सर्वाधमा लोके स्त्रीणां भरतसत्तम

Transliteration

sāhaṃ sarvādhāmā loke strīṇāṃ bharatasattama

Translation

Vaiśampāyana berkata: “Wahai yang terbaik daripada keturunan Bharata, di dunia ini akulah yang paling hina dan paling jatuh antara kaum wanita.”

Word by Word

• सा: she / I (as a woman, contextually)
• सा: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• अहम्: I
• अहम्: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: अस्मद्
• Form: Common, Nominative, Singular

• सर्वाधमा: the most base / worst of all
• सर्वाधमा: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्वाधम
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• लोके: in the world
• लोके: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: लोक
• Form: Masculine, Locative, Singular

• स्त्रीणाम्: of women
• स्त्रीणाम्: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्त्री
• Form: Feminine, Genitive, Plural

• भरतसत्तम: O best of the Bharatas
• भरतसत्तम: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun (Vocative epithet)
• Root: भरतसत्तम
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• Bharatas (dynasty/lineage)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The line expresses moral self-assessment and remorse: a speaker (reported by Vaiśampāyana) judges herself as having fallen from proper conduct, highlighting the Mahābhārata’s concern with accountability and the ethical weight of one’s actions within social and dharmic expectations.

What is happening in the narrative?

Within the Śānti Parva’s reflective discourse, Vaiśampāyana narrates a moment where a woman voices intense self-reproach, addressing a Bharata noble as “bharatasattama,” framing her confession or lament in a courtly-ethical setting.