Shloka 38
Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Counsel on Restraint and the Pāṇḍavas’ Authorized Return (धृतराष्ट्र-उपदेशः)
आभाति पद्मवद् वक्त्र॑ सस्वेदं मल्लिकेव च । वेदिमध्या दीर्घकेशी ताम्रास्था नातिलोमशा,उसका स्वेदबिन्दुओंसे विभूषित मुख कमलके समान सुन्दर और मल्लिकाके समान सुगन्धित है। उसका मध्यभाग वेदीके समान कृश दिखायी देता है। उसके सिरके केश बड़े- बड़े हैं, मुख और ओछ्ठ अरुणवर्णके हैं तथा उसके अंगोंमें अधिक रोमावलियाँ नहीं हैं
yudhiṣṭhira uvāca | ābhāti padmavad vaktraṃ sasvedaṃ mallikeva ca | vedimadhyā dīrghakeśī tāmrāṣṭhā nātilomaśā ||
Wika ni Yudhiṣṭhira: “Nagniningning ang kanyang mukha na parang lotus, pinalalamutian ng mga patak ng pawis, at mabango na parang sampagita. Payat ang kanyang baywang na gaya ng gitna ng dambanang handog; mahaba ang buhok; mapulang tila tanso ang mga labi; at hindi mabalahibo nang labis ang kanyang mga bisig at binti.”
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse illustrates how powerful sensory impressions (beauty, fragrance, bodily signs) can shape perception and speech; in the ethical atmosphere of the Sabha Parva, such descriptions implicitly raise questions about restraint, propriety, and the responsibility to keep desire from overruling dharma.
Yudhiṣṭhira is describing a woman’s physical features in vivid, poetic similes—lotus-like radiance, jasmine-like fragrance, a slender waist, long hair, red lips—within the courtly setting of the Sabha Parva, where appearances and desire often intersect with moral and political consequences.