Mahabharata 3.13.5 — Vana Parva, Adhyaya 13, Shloka 5

Book 3 (Āraṇyaka-parva), Adhyāya 13 — Alliance Gathering; Arjuna’s Praise of Keśava; Draupadī’s Duḥkha-nivedana; Assurances and Vows

Devanagari script

वीरसेनसुतो यैस्तु राज्यात्‌ प्रभ्रंशित: पुरा । अतर्कितविनाशश्ष्‌ देवनेन विशाम्पते

Transliteration

vīrasenasuto yais tu rājyāt prabhraṁśitaḥ purā | atarkita-vināśaś ca devena viśāmpate ||

Translation

Ó senhor dos povos, foi pelo jogo que outrora Nala, filho de Vīrasena, foi derrubado do seu reino. Do lançar dos dados nasce uma ruína súbita e imprevista—uma destruição que a mente sequer consegue antecipar.

Word by Word

• वीरसेनसुतः: the son of Vīrasena (Nala)
• वीरसेनसुतः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: वीरसेन-सुत
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• यैः: by whom/with which (persons)
• यैः: Karana
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: यद्
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Instrumental, Plural

• तु: but/indeed
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु

• राज्यात्: from the kingdom
• राज्यात्: Apadana
• Type: Noun
• Root: राज्य
• Form: Neuter, Ablative, Singular

• प्रभ्रंशितः: made to fall; dethroned
• Type: Adjective
• Root: प्र-भ्रंश्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular, क्त (past passive participle)

• पुरा: formerly/once
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पुरा

• अतर्कितविनाशः: an unimagined/unexpected ruin
• अतर्कितविनाशः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: अ-तर्कित-विनाश
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• देवनेन: by gambling; by play (of dice)
• देवनेन: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: देवन
• Form: Neuter, Instrumental, Singular

• विशाम्पते: O lord of the people (king)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विशाम्-पति
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

Speaker

वायुदेव उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vāyudeva
• Nala
• Vīrasena
• dice (deva)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Gambling (dice-play) can bring sudden, unimaginable ruin; a ruler should avoid such vice because it destroys sovereignty, judgment, and stability, as illustrated by Nala’s fall.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vāyudeva addresses a king (‘lord of the people’) and cites the earlier example of Nala, son of Vīrasena, who was dethroned due to gambling, emphasizing how quickly dice can cause total collapse.