Shloka 4
अर्जुनदुःखहेतुप्रश्नः — Inquiry into the cause of Arjuna’s recurring hardship
Book 14, Chapter 89
Devanagari script
त॑ वपाधूमगन्ध॑ तु धर्मराज: सहानुजै:
Transliteration
taṁ vapādhūmagandhaṁ tu dharmarājaḥ sahānujaiḥ
Translation
तं वपाधूमगन्धं तु धर्मराजः सहानुजैः । आजिघ्रत यथान्यायं प्रवृत्ते कर्मणि द्विजैः ॥
Word by Word
तंhim/that (person)
तं:
Karma
TypePronoun
Rootतद्
FormMasculine, Accusative, Singular
वपाधूमगन्धंthe smell of fat-smoke
वपाधूमगन्धं:
Karma
TypeNoun
Rootवपा-धूम-गन्ध
FormMasculine, Accusative, Singular
तुbut/indeed
तु:
TypeIndeclinable
Rootतु
धर्मराजःDharmaraja (Yudhishthira)
धर्मराजः:
Karta
TypeNoun
Rootधर्मराज
FormMasculine, Nominative, Singular
सहानुजैःtogether with (his) younger brothers
सहानुजैः:
Karana
TypeNoun
Rootसह-अनुज
FormMasculine, Instrumental, Plural
Speaker
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Characters & Entities
V
VaiśampāyanaD
Dharmarāja (Yudhiṣṭhira)Y
Younger brothers of Yudhiṣṭhira (the Pāṇḍavas)V
vapā (sacrificial fat)D
dhūma (smoke)Character Dynamics
Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)
War Context
Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)
Philosophical Teaching
Political Layer
Geographic Context
Meter (Chandas)
Sandhi Notes
Educational Q&A
Even a victorious king must remain bound to dharma: the sacrificial setting symbolizes that political authority is legitimate only when disciplined by righteous ritual order and responsibility.
Vaiśampāyana describes Yudhiṣṭhira, accompanied by his younger brothers, noticing the odor of smoke from the sacrificial fat—an atmospheric detail indicating the ongoing Aśvamedha rite and the Pāṇḍavas’ participation in it.