परां पीडां समाश्रित्य नष्टचित्तो महातपा: । चिन्ताशोकपरीतात्मा न जज्ञे मोहपीडित: । स समाश्चासितो राजा तृष्णीमासीद् विचेतन:
vaiśampāyana uvāca | parāṃ pīḍāṃ samāśritya naṣṭacitto mahātapāḥ | cintāśokaparītātmā na jajñe mohapīḍitaḥ | sa samāścāsito rājā tṛṣṇīm āsīd vicetanaḥ |
Sinabi ni Vaiśampāyana: Sa tindi ng pagdurusa, ang dakilang haring mapag-asceta ay nawalan ng linaw ng isip. Nababalot ang kanyang kalooban ng pag-aalala at pagdadalamhati; pinahihirapan ng pagkalito, hindi niya maunawaan ang dapat gawin. Kaya, nang siya’y nakaupo, nanatili siyang tahimik, na wari’y walang malay.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
The verse highlights how overwhelming grief and attachment can eclipse discernment (viveka), leaving even a powerful king mentally incapacitated. Ethically, it warns that surrendering entirely to sorrow and fatalism can paralyze responsible action and understanding.
After the catastrophic losses of the Kurukṣetra war, Dhṛtarāṣṭra is seized by intense anguish. He becomes bewildered and unresponsive, sitting silently as if unconscious, while the narrator Vaiśampāyana describes his state of mind.