Shloka 27
धृतराष्ट्रस्य पाण्डवेषु प्रीति-वृत्तान्तः | Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Affectionate Disposition toward the Pāṇḍavas
युधिष्ठिरभयादेति भृशं तप्यति पाण्डव: । भूमौ शये जप्यपरो दर्भेष्वजिनसंवृत:
yudhiṣṭhirabhayād eti bhṛśaṃ tapyati pāṇḍavaḥ | bhūmau śaye japyaparo darbheṣv ajinasaṃvṛtaḥ ||
धृतराष्ट्र उवाच—युधिष्ठिरभयादेति भृशं तप्यति पाण्डवः। भूमौ शये जप्यपरो दर्भेष्वजिनसंवृतः॥
धृतराष्ट उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the moral psychology of post-war life: fear of righteous judgment and inner remorse can drive a person toward austerity, simplicity, and spiritual discipline (japa). Ethical accountability is portrayed not merely as external punishment but as an inward burning that seeks purification.
Dhṛtarāṣṭra describes a Pāṇḍava (as referred to in the passage) who, fearing Yudhiṣṭhira, is intensely distressed and has adopted an ascetic mode of living—lying on the ground upon darbha grass, covered with a deerskin, and devoted to recitation—signaling withdrawal from royal comforts into penitential practice.