Shloka 13
दमयन्तीवाक्य-प्रेषणम्
Damayantī’s Message and the Dispatch of Brahmin Envoys
आसीदू बहुमता नारी तस्यादृढतरं वच: । स वै केनचिदर्थन तया मन्दो व्ययुज्यत,'आयुष्मन्! वह किसकी पत्नी है, जिसके लिये तुम इस प्रकार निरन्तर शोकमग्न रहते हो।' तब राजा नलने उससे कहा--'किसी अल्पबुद्धि पुरुषके एक स्त्री थी, जो उसके अत्यन्त आदरकी पात्र थी। किंतु उस पुरुषकी बात अत्यन्त दृढ़ नहीं थी। वह अपनी प्रतिज्ञास फिसल गया। किसी विशेष प्रयोजनसे विवश होकर वह भाग्यहीन पुरुष अपनी पत्नीसे बिछुड़ गया
bṛhadaśva uvāca |
āsīd bahumatā nārī tasyādṛḍhataraṃ vacaḥ |
sa vai kenacid arthena tayā mando vyayujyata ||
Bṛhadaśva disse: “Havia uma mulher muito estimada por ele; mas sua palavra não foi firme. Por alguma necessidade particular, aquele tolo e desditoso separou-se dela.”
बृहृदश्च उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical cost of unsteadiness: when one’s word and resolve are not firm, even what is most valued (a beloved spouse, a stable life) can be lost, leading to suffering and separation.
Bṛhadaśva continues the Nala-upākhyāna, describing a man who deeply valued his wife but, due to an unsteady resolve and some pressing circumstance, became separated from her—setting the emotional ground for the tale of Nala and Damayantī.