Shloka 443
Adhyāya 90: Babhruvāhana’s Reception and the Commencement of Yudhiṣṭhira’s Aśvamedha
त्वगस्थिभूतां वेपन्ती ततो भारयामुवाच ह । उन दिद्वान् ब्राह्मणशिरोमणिने अपने ही अनुमानसे यह जान लिया कि यह मेरी वृद्धा स्त्री स्वयं भी क्षुधासे कष्ट पा रही है
tvag-asthi-bhūtāṁ vepantīṁ tato bhāryām uvāca ha | anenaiva anumānena vidvān brāhmaṇa-śiromaṇiḥ jñātavān—eṣā mama vṛddhā strī svayam api kṣudhā-kliṣṭā, śrāntā, atyanta-durbalā ca | asyāḥ tapasvinyāḥ śarīre tvacā pracchādita-asthi-mātra-śeṣaḥ pañjara-prāyaḥ, sā ca kampate | tasyā avasthāṁ dṛṣṭvā sa patnyai uvāca—
Thấy vợ mình chỉ còn da bọc xương, run rẩy vì kiệt quệ, vị Bà-la-môn uyên bác—bậc đứng đầu trong hàng trí giả—tự suy mà biết rằng người phối ngẫu già nua của ông cũng đang chịu khổ vì đói, mệt lả và vô cùng yếu ớt. Nhìn tình trạng ấy, ông cất lời nói với nàng.
नकुल उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage foregrounds dharma as compassionate responsibility: wisdom is shown not merely in austerity or reasoning, but in recognizing another’s suffering—especially one’s dependent companion—and responding with care and moral urgency.
Nakula narrates a scene in which an eminent brahmin observes his aged, ascetic wife, now severely emaciated and trembling from hunger and exhaustion. Understanding her plight by inference, he addresses her, setting up the next action or counsel in the story.