Shloka 17
शिखण्ड्यपि महाराज पुंवद् राजकुले तदा । विजहार मुदा युक्तः स्त्रीत्वं नैवातिरोचयन्
śikhaṇḍy api mahārāja puṁvad rājākule tadā | vijahāra mudā yuktaḥ strītvaṁ naivātirocayan ||
О великий царь, и тогда Шикханди, живя в том царском доме, ходила и держалась радостно, как мужчина, и вовсе не находила услады в своём женском состоянии.
दुपद उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames an ethical-narrative point about inner disposition versus outward social role: Śikhaṇḍī’s self-understanding and conduct are described as masculine within a royal setting, foreshadowing later dharma-conflicts where personal identity, social perception, and wartime duty intersect.
Drupada is recounting Śikhaṇḍī’s life in the royal household, emphasizing that Śikhaṇḍī lived and moved about like a man and did not take pleasure in being regarded as female—details that prepare the audience for Śikhaṇḍī’s later role in the events leading to Bhīṣma’s fall.