Shloka 4
Udyoga-parva Adhyāya 30: Sañjaya’s Departure and Yudhiṣṭhira’s Commission of Greetings
गावल्गणे कुरून् गत्वा धृतराष्ट्रं महाबलम् | अभिवाद्योपसंगृहा[ ततः पृच्छेरनामयम्
gāvalgaṇe kurūn gatvā dhṛtarāṣṭraṃ mahābalam | abhivādyopasaṅgṛhya tataḥ pṛccher anāmayam, saṃjaya ||
Yudhiṣṭhira berkata: “Wahai Gāvalgaṇa (Sañjaya), pergilah ke negeri Kuru. Setelah mendekati Dhṛtarāṣṭra yang perkasa, sampaikan sembah hormat dengan penuh rendah diri, memegang kedua kakinya, lalu tanyakan khabar kesejahteraannya. Biarlah penghormatanku disampaikan melalui dirimu.”
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even amid looming conflict, dharma requires courtesy, humility, and concern for an elder’s welfare. Yudhiṣṭhira models ethical diplomacy: respectful address, physical gesture of reverence, and a humane inquiry before any political business.
Yudhiṣṭhira instructs Sañjaya (addressed as Gāvalgaṇa) to go to the Kuru court, respectfully greet King Dhṛtarāṣṭra—symbolically by clasping his feet—and ask about his health, conveying the Pāṇḍavas’ deference as part of the embassy context in Udyoga Parva.