Shloka 14

धृतराष्ट्रस्य सत्कारः — Dhṛtarāṣṭra Honored in the Post-war Court

Devanagari script

व्यासश्न भगवान्‌ नित्यमासांचक्रे नृपेण ह । कथा: कुर्वन्‌ पुराणर्षिदिवर्षिपित्रक्षसाम्‌

Transliteration

vaiśampāyana uvāca | vyāsaś ca bhagavān nityam āsāṃ cakre nṛpeṇa ha | kathāḥ kurvan purāṇarṣidevarṣipitṛrakṣasām ||

Translation

Vaiśampāyana nói: Bậc đáng tôn kính Vyāsa thường xuyên đến ngồi bên nhà vua. Để làm vững tâm trí và dẫn dắt ông hướng về đời sống tiết chế, ngài kể những chuyện xưa về các hiền triết cổ, các thiên hiền (devarṣi), các Pitṛ—linh hồn tổ tiên—và loài Rākṣasa; những câu chuyện đặt nỗi khổ của con người vào một trật tự đạo lý và vũ trụ rộng lớn hơn.

Word by Word

• व्यासः: Vyasa
• व्यासः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: व्यास
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• भगवान्: the venerable/lordly (one)
• भगवान्: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: भगवत्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• नित्यम्: always, daily
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: नित्य

• आसाम्: these (f.)
• आसाम्: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: इदम्
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Plural

• चक्रे: did/made
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ
• Form: Perfect (Paroksha-bhuta), Third, Singular, Atmanepada

• नृपेण: by/with the king
• नृपेण: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: नृप
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Singular

• ह: indeed (emphatic particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ह

• कथाः: stories, accounts
• कथाः: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: कथा
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Plural

• कुर्वन्: doing, narrating
• कुर्वन्: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ
• Form: शतृ (present active participle), Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• पुराणर्षि: the ancient seer
• पुराणर्षि: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुराणर्षि
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• देवर्षि: of divine seers
• Type: Noun
• Root: देवर्षि
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Plural

• पितृ: of the ancestors (pitrs)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितृ
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Plural

• राक्षसाम्: of demons (rakshasas)
• Type: Noun
• Root: राक्षस
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Plural

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• Vyāsa
• the king (nṛpa)
• Purāṇarṣis (ancient seers)
• Devarṣis (divine sages)
• Pitṛs (ancestors)
• Rākṣasas

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

A grief-stricken ruler is steadied through sacred and ancient narratives: remembering the wider moral universe (ṛṣis, ancestors, and other beings) helps reorient the mind from personal loss toward dharma, restraint, and long-term spiritual welfare.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana reports that Vyāsa regularly comes to the king and sits with him, recounting traditional stories about ancient sages, divine sages, the Pitṛs, and Rākṣasas—serving as guidance and consolation in the Ashramavāsika setting.