Shloka 7

Adhyāya 125: Raṅga-pradarśana — Arjuna’s Entry and Astric Demonstration (रङ्गप्रदर्शनम्)

Devanagari script

रहस्येकां तु तां दृष्टवा राजा राजीवलोचनाम्‌ । न शशाक नियमन्तुं तं कामं कामवशीकृत:,एकान्त प्रदेशमें कमलनयनी माद्रीको अकेली देखकर राजा कामका वेग रोक न सके, वे पूर्णतः: कामदेवके अधीन हो गये थे

Transliteration

rahasy ekāṁ tu tāṁ dṛṣṭvā rājā rājīvalocanām | na śaśāka niyamantuṁ taṁ kāmaṁ kāmavaśīkṛtaḥ ||

Translation

Wika ni Vaiśampāyana: Nang makita niya si Madri—ang may matang gaya ng lotus—na nag-iisa sa isang lihim na pook, hindi napigil ng hari ang bugso ng pagnanasa; sapagkat siya’y lubos nang napasailalim sa kapangyarihan ng kāma.

Word by Word

रहस्येin secret, in a secluded place

एकाम्alone, solitary

तुbut, however

ताम्her

दृष्ट्वाhaving seen

राजाthe king

राजीव-लोचनाम्lotus-eyed (woman)

नnot

शशाकwas able

नियमयितुम्to restrain, to control

तम्that

कामम्desire, passion

काम-वशीकृतःbrought under the control of desire

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

the king (Pāṇḍu, by context)

Mādrī

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the ethical danger of kāma when it overwhelms niyama (restraint): even a king can lose self-mastery, and such loss of control becomes a cause for later suffering and moral complication.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana narrates that the king, upon seeing Mādrī alone in a secluded spot, becomes overpowered by desire and is unable to restrain himself—an immediate narrative lead-in to actions that will have serious consequences.