Shloka 13
Duryodhana’s Post-Duel Lament and Instructions (भग्नसक्थस्य विलापः)
कथं दुःखमिदं तीव्रं गान्धारी सा सहिष्यति । श्रुत्वा विनिहतं पुत्रं छलेनाजिह्ययोधिनम्,उनका पुत्र सरलतासे युद्ध कर रहा था; परंतु छलसे मारा गया। यह सुनकर गान्धारी देवी इस तीव्र दुःखको कैसे सह सकेंगी?
kathaṁ duḥkham idaṁ tīvraṁ gāndhārī sā sahiṣyati | śrutvā vinihataṁ putraṁ chalena ajihyayodhinam |
Sinabi ni Vaiśampāyana: “Paano matitiis ni Gāndhārī ang matinding dalamhating ito—kapag nabalitaan niyang ang kanyang anak, na lumalaban nang tuwid at walang daya, ay napatay sa pamamagitan ng isang pakana?”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical tension between straightforward, rule-bound combat and victory gained through stratagem. It frames deceitful killing as morally troubling and emphasizes the human cost—especially a mother’s unbearable grief—when dharma in war is compromised.
Vaiśampāyana anticipates Gāndhārī’s reaction upon hearing that her son has been killed not in open, fair fighting but through a deceptive tactic, underscoring both the brutality of the war’s endgame and the impending lamentation in the Kaurava household.