Shloka 12

Devanagari script

उवाच भरतश्रेष्ठ प्रसीदेति पुन: पुनः । क्षमस्व राजन यत्र प्रोक्त धर्मकामेन भीरुणा

Transliteration

uvāca bharataśreṣṭha prasīdeti punaḥ punaḥ | kṣamasva rājan yatra proktaṃ dharmakāmena bhīruṇā ||

Translation

Sañjaya nói: Hướng về bậc ưu tú nhất trong dòng Bharata, chàng hết lần này đến lần khác khẩn cầu: “Xin bệ hạ rộng lòng, xin bệ hạ rộng lòng. Xin tha thứ cho những lời lẽ không phải phép mà thần đã thốt ra—thốt ra trong sợ hãi, nhưng được thúc đẩy bởi ước nguyện gìn giữ dharma.”

Word by Word

• {'uvāca': 'said, spoke', 'bharataśreṣṭha': 'best of the Bharatas

• an honorific for a foremost Kuru king', 'prasīda / prasīdeti': 'be pleased

• be pacified', 'punaḥ punaḥ': 'again and again

• repeatedly', 'kṣamasva': 'forgive (imperative, 2nd person singular)', 'rājan': 'O king (vocative)', 'yatra': 'wherein

• for which (i.e., the matter in which)', 'proktam': 'spoken

• uttered', 'dharma-kāma': 'desiring dharma

• intent on righteousness/duty', 'bhīru': 'fearful

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• bharataśreṣṭha (honorific addressee, i.e., the Kuru king)
• rājan (the king addressed)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Even when one believes one is acting for dharma, fear can lead to harsh or improper speech; ethical conduct requires acknowledging fault, showing humility, and seeking forgiveness from the rightful authority.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya narrates a moment of reconciliation: a speaker addresses a Kuru king with repeated pleas for calm and pardon, admitting that earlier words were improper—spoken out of fear though motivated by concern for dharma.