Shloka 37

Kaurava Court Hears of the Pāṇḍavas’ Forest Hardship (वैचित्रवीर्यवंशीयस्य राज्ञः करुणाविचारः)

Devanagari script

निरुष्य तत्र सुचिरमेवं वल्निर्वशं गत: । मनस्तासु विनिक्षिप्य कामयानो वराड़ना:

Transliteration

niruṣya tatra suciram evaṁ valnir vaśaṁ gataḥ | manas tāsu vinikṣipya kāmayāno varāṅganāḥ ||

Translation

Mārkaṇḍeya nói: Tự kiềm chế ở đó rất lâu, cuối cùng Ngài cũng rơi vào quyền lực của dục vọng. Đặt tâm trí vào những người nữ ấy, Ngài bắt đầu khao khát các thiếu nữ có thân thể mỹ lệ.

Word by Word

निरुष्यhaving confined/kept in check

तत्रthere

सुचिरम्for a long time

एवम्thus

वल्नीthe ant-hill (valmī)

निर्वशम्helpless/under control

गतःhaving gone / having become

मनःmind

तासुin/among those (women/things)

विनिक्षिप्यhaving placed/settled

कामयानःdesiring

वराङ्गनाःbeautiful women

Speaker

मार्कण्डेय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Mārkaṇḍeya

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

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 the ethical danger of losing inner mastery: when the mind is fixed on sense-objects, even long restraint can collapse into desire. Dharma here is linked to vigilant mental discipline, not merely outward control.

What is happening in the narrative?

Mārkaṇḍeya narrates a moment where a person, after long restraint, becomes overpowered by passion; his mind turns toward certain women, and he begins to desire them—marking a turning point from restraint to infatuation.