Shloka 2

पुनर्द्यूत-समाह्वानम्

Renewed Summons to the Dice-Game and Exile Wager

Devanagari script

दुर्योधन उवाच प्रातिकामिन्‌ द्रौपदीमानयस्व न ते भयं विद्यते पाण्डवेभ्य: | क्षत्ता हायं विवदत्येव भीतो न चास्माकं॑ वृद्धिकाम: सदैव

Transliteration

duryodhana uvāca | prātikāmin draupadīm ānayāsva na te bhayaṁ vidyate pāṇḍavebhyaḥ | kṣattā hy ayaṁ vivadaty eva bhīto na cāsmākaṁ vṛddhikāmaḥ sadaiva ||

Translation

दुर्योधन उवाच—प्रातिकामिन्, द्रौपदीमानयस्व; न ते पाण्डवेभ्यो भयं विद्यते। क्षत्ता विदुरोऽयं भीतः सन् विवदत्येव, न चास्माकं वृद्धिकामः सदा।

Word by Word

• {'prātikāmin': 'Prātikāmin

• an attendant/messenger (here addressed as the one to fetch Draupadī)', 'draupadīm': 'Draupadī (accusative)

• the woman to be brought to the assembly', 'ānayāsva': 'bring (imperative, 2nd person singular)', 'na te bhayam vidyate': 'there is no fear for you / you need not fear', 'pāṇḍavebhyaḥ': 'from the Pāṇḍavas (ablative plural)', 'kṣattā': 'the chamberlain

• a title used for Vidura', 'hi': 'indeed, for', 'ayam': 'this (person)', 'vivadati eva': 'keeps disputing/arguing only', 'bhītaḥ': 'afraid, fearful', 'na ca': 'and not', 'asmākam': 'of us, our', 'vṛddhi-kāmaḥ': 'desiring growth/prosperity

• well-wisher', 'sadaiva': 'always'}

Speaker

दुर्योधन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Duryodhana
• Prātikāmin
• Draupadī
• Pāṇḍavas
• Vidura (Kṣattā)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights how arrogance and attachment to power distort judgment: Duryodhana dismisses Vidura’s ethical counsel as cowardice and acts without regard for dharma, showing the danger of silencing wise advisors and normalizing injustice.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Kaurava assembly after the dice-game, Duryodhana instructs the attendant Prātikāmin to bring Draupadī into the hall, assuring him he need not fear the Pāṇḍavas, while deriding Vidura (the kṣattā) as fearful and not a true well-wisher of the Kauravas.