Shloka 236

Devanagari script

अमार्गेणैवमार भ्य घोरामापदमागत: । “इस प्रकार गुरुजनोंने पहले-से ही सब लोगोंको सदाके लिये यह शिक्षा दे रखी है। परंतु मैं उस शास्त्रोक्त सनातन मार्गका उल्लंघन करके बिना रास्तेके ही चलकर इस प्रकार अनुचित कर्मका आरम्भ करके भयंकर आपत्तिमें पड़ गया हूँ

Transliteration

amārgeṇaivamārabhya ghorām āpadam āgataḥ |

Translation

Sañjaya nói: «Vì khởi hành theo một lối không đường—bắt đầu một việc ngoài khuôn phép được kinh điển chuẩn nhận—ta đã rơi vào tai ương ghê gớm. Dẫu các bậc trưởng thượng từ lâu đã dạy mọi người con đường vĩnh cửu theo lời kinh, ta vẫn vi phạm quy tắc muôn đời ấy; đi không theo lối, khởi sự việc bất chính, nên đã bước vào cảnh khốn cùng đáng sợ.»

Word by Word

अमार्गेणby the wrong path / without a path

एवindeed / just

आरभ्यhaving begun / starting

घोराम्terrible

आपदम्calamity / misfortune

आगतःhas come / has fallen (into)

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

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?

Departing from the śāstra-guided, time-honored path (sanātana-mārga) and initiating action through an improper means leads to grave consequences; ethical transgression ripens into calamity.

What is happening in the narrative?

The speaker reflects on having begun an undertaking “without a path,” i.e., contrary to proper conduct taught by elders, and acknowledges that this deviation has brought about a fearful crisis—an admission of wrongdoing and its fallout amid the grim events of the Sauptika Parva.