Shloka 5

नारदेन धृतराष्ट्रगतिवर्णनम् | Nārada’s Account of Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Future Course

Devanagari script

महाप्रज्ञा बुद्धिमती देवी धर्मार्थदर्शिनी । आगमापायतत्त्वज्ञा कच्चिदेषा न शोचति,'गान्धारी बड़ी बुद्धिमती और महाविदुषी है। यह देवी धर्म और अर्थको समझनेवाली तथा जन्म-मरणके तत्त्वको जाननेवाली है। इसे तो कभी शोक नहीं होता है

Transliteration

mahāprajñā buddhimatī devī dharmārthadarśinī | āgamāpāyatattvajñā kaccid eṣā na śocati ||

Translation

Vaiśampāyana nói: “Gāndhārī là người đàn bà có tuệ giác lớn và trí tuệ sáng suốt, một bậc phu nhân cao quý, phân minh được dharma và artha. Bà thấu rõ chân lý của sự đến và đi—sinh và tử. Vậy thì, bà ấy hoàn toàn không sầu muộn hay sao?”

Word by Word

महाप्रज्ञाvery wise, of great intelligence

बुद्धिमतीintelligent

देवीlady, noble woman

धर्मार्थदर्शिनीone who sees/understands dharma and artha

आगमापायतत्त्वज्ञाknower of the reality of coming and going (birth and death)

कच्चित्whether?, I hope (interrogative particle)

एषाthis (woman)

नnot

शोचतिgrieves, laments

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

Gāndhārī

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

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 a moral-psychological ideal: one who truly understands dharma and artha, and who grasps the reality of birth and death, is expected to meet loss with steadiness rather than being overwhelmed by grief.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana describes Gāndhārī’s exceptional discernment and her understanding of the truths of life and death, then poses a reflective question—whether such a woman would still experience sorrow—framing her as a model of composed wisdom amid the aftermath of catastrophe.