Shloka 63

Āśvamedha-dīkṣā-nirdeśaḥ — Scheduling the Initiation and Assigning Protection for the Horse

Devanagari script

कुन्तीं च राजशार्दूल तदा भरतसत्तम | नृपश्रेष्ठ भरतभूषण! धृतराष्ट्रसे मिलनेके बाद वे सुबलपुत्री गान्धारी और कुन्तीसे मिले

Transliteration

kuntīṃ ca rājaśārdūla tadā bharatasattama | nṛpaśreṣṭha bharatabhūṣaṇa dhṛtarāṣṭrase milaneke bād ve subalaputrī gāndhārī aur kuntīse mile |

Translation

Vaiśampāyana disse: “Ó tigre entre os reis, ó o melhor dos Bhāratas, ó soberano supremo, ornamento da linhagem de Bharata—então ele também encontrou Kuntī. Depois de encontrar Dhṛtarāṣṭra, prosseguiu para encontrar Gāndhārī, filha de Subala, e Kuntī.” A passagem ressalta a ética do pós-guerra: honrar os mais velhos e manter os laços familiares por meio de uma reconciliação respeitosa.

Word by Word

• कुन्तीम्: Kunti (as object)
• कुन्तीम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: कुन्ती
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• राजशार्दूल: O tiger among kings
• Type: Noun
• Root: राजशार्दूल
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• तदा: then
• तदा: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तदा

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

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• Kuntī
• Dhṛtarāṣṭra
• Gāndhārī
• Subala
• Bharata lineage (Bharatas)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Even after devastating conflict, dharma requires honoring relationships and elders through respectful meetings and reconciliation, sustaining social and familial order.

What is happening in the narrative?

After meeting Dhṛtarāṣṭra, the central figure being addressed proceeds to meet the senior women of the Kuru household—Gāndhārī (Subala’s daughter) and Kuntī—marking a formal, duty-bound encounter in the post-war setting.