Shloka 33

धृतराष्ट्रस्य पाण्डवेषु प्रीति-वृत्तान्तः | Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Affectionate Disposition toward the Pāṇḍavas

Devanagari script

समतीता नृशंसास्ते स्वधर्मेण हता युधि । न तेषु प्रतिकर्तव्यं पश्यामि कुरुनन्दन

Transliteration

samatītā nṛśaṃsās te svadharmeṇa hatā yudhi | na teṣu pratikartavyaṃ paśyāmi kurunandana ||

Translation

«О Курунандана, те жестокие люди уже ушли; они были убиты в битве согласно своему собственному долгу кшатрия. Я не вижу, чтобы для них следовало делать что-либо ещё.»

Word by Word

• {'samatītāḥ': 'passed away

• ended', 'nṛśaṃsāḥ': 'cruel, ruthless (persons)', 'te': 'those

• they', 'svadharmeṇa': 'by/according to one’s own duty (svadharma), especially kṣatriya-duty here', 'hatāḥ': 'killed

• slain', 'yudhi': 'in battle

• in war', 'na': 'not', 'teṣu': 'with regard to them

• for them', 'pratikartavyam': 'something to be done in return

• further obligation', 'paśyāmi': 'I see

• I consider', 'kurunandana': 'O delight of the Kurus (address to a Kuru prince, here Yudhiṣṭhira)'}

Speaker

धृतराष्ट उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Dhṛtarāṣṭra
• Kurunandana (Yudhiṣṭhira)
• Kauravas (implied as Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s sons)
• Kuru dynasty
• battle/war (Kurukṣetra implied)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Dhṛtarāṣṭra frames the Kauravas’ death as the completion of their kṣatriya-duty in war, implying that further retaliation or compensatory action is neither necessary nor dharmically appropriate; the verse gestures toward closure after violence and restraint from continuing cycles of retribution.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Āśramavāsika context, Dhṛtarāṣṭra addresses Yudhiṣṭhira (Kurunandana), reflecting on his sons who committed wrongs yet have already been slain in the war; he states that he sees no further action to be taken regarding them.