Shloka 256
Yudhiṣṭhira’s Remorse and Vyāsa’s Teaching on Impermanence (Śoka-nivāraṇa)
शोषयिष्ये प्रियान् प्राणानिहस्थो5हं तपोधना: । तपोधनो! अब मैं किसी तरह न तो अन्न खाऊँगा और न पानी ही पीऊँगा। यहीं रहकर अपने प्यारे प्राणोंको सुखा दूँगा
śoṣayiṣye priyān prāṇān ihāstho 'haṃ tapodhanāḥ | tapodhanā! adya ahaṃ kathaṃcid api na annaṃ khādiṣyāmi na ca pānīyaṃ pāsyāmi | ihaiva sthitvā svān priyān prāṇān śoṣayiṣye |
Yudhiṣṭhira berkata: “Wahai engkau yang kekayaannya ialah tapa! Di sini juga aku akan mengeringkan nafas hidupku yang tercinta. Mulai hari ini, aku tidak akan makan dan tidak akan minum air. Tetap di sini, aku akan membiarkan nyawaku yang kukasihi surut hingga padam.”
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical tension between grief-driven self-punishment and the dharmic duty to endure and act responsibly. It presents fasting as an extreme form of tapas, often arising from remorse and moral anguish, and invites reflection on whether self-harm can be a rightful response to suffering.
Yudhiṣṭhira, overwhelmed and distressed, declares to an ascetic (addressed as tapodhana) that he will remain where he is and undertake a total fast—neither food nor water—intending to let his life-breaths waste away.