Shloka 17
Śārṅgakānāṃ Avināśaḥ (Why the Śārṅga Birds Were Spared) | शार्ङ्गकानामविनाशः
तत्रैव गच्छ कौन्तेय यत्र सा सात्वतात्मजा । सुबद्धस्यापि भारस्य पूर्वबन्ध: श्लथायते,द्रौपदीने प्रणणकोपवश कुरुनन्दन अर्जुनसे कहा--'कुन्तीकुमार! यहाँ क्यों आये हो, वहीं जाओ, जहाँ वह सात्वतवंशकी कन्या सुभद्रा है। सच है, बोझको कितना ही कसकर बाँधा गया हो, जब उसे दूसरी बार बाँधते हैं, तब पहला बन्धन ढीला पड़ जाता है (यही हालत मेरे प्रति तुम्हारे प्रेमबन्धनकी है)
tatraiva gaccha kaunteya yatra sā sātvātātmajā | subaddhasyāpi bhārasya pūrvabandhaḥ ślathāyate ||
Disse Vaiśampāyana: “Vai-te daqui, ó filho de Kuntī, ao próprio lugar onde está Subhadrā, a filha da linhagem Sātvata. Até uma carga bem atada afrouxa no seu primeiro nó quando é atada de novo; assim também, quando se forma um novo apego, o vínculo anterior tende a ceder.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse uses a practical metaphor: when a burden is tied again, the earlier knot can loosen. Likewise, forming a new bond can weaken a prior attachment. It highlights the fragility of human commitments when competing affections arise.
The speaker directs Arjuna (Kaunteya) to go to Subhadrā, identifying her as the Sātvata clan’s daughter, and comments—through the metaphor of a loosening knot—on how earlier bonds can slacken when a new relationship is formed.