Mahabharata — Virata Parva, Shloka 29

Adhyāya 14: Sudēṣṇā Sends Sairandhrī to Kīcaka’s House (सुदेष्णा–सैरन्ध्री–कीचक संवादः)

Devanagari script

नार्हसीहासुखं वस्तुं सुखाहा सुखवर्जिता । प्राप्तुह्मनुत्तमं सौख्यं मत्तस्त्वं मत्तगामिनि

Transliteration

nārhasīhā-sukhaṁ vastuṁ sukhāhā sukhavarjitā | prāptum anuttamaṁ saukhyaṁ mattas tvaṁ mattagāmini ||

Translation

Vaiśampāyana nói: “Nàng không nên sống ở chốn vô phúc này. Dẫu xứng đáng hưởng an lạc, nàng lại bị tước mất hạnh phúc nơi đây. Hỡi Sairandhrī, người tỳ nữ bước đi với dáng uyển chuyển như say men—hãy nhận từ ta niềm khoái lạc tối thượng.”

Word by Word

• {'na': 'not', 'arhasi (ārhasi)': 'you are fit/you ought', 'sukham': 'happiness, comfort, pleasure', 'vastum': 'to dwell, to reside', 'sukhāhā (sukhāhāḥ / sukhāhā)': 'one who is meant for/accustomed to comfort (sense: ‘fit for happiness’)', 'sukhavarjitā': 'deprived of happiness', 'prāptum': 'to obtain', 'anuttamam': 'unsurpassed, supreme', 'saukhyam': 'pleasure, ease, well-being', 'mattas': 'from me', 'tvam': 'you', 'mattagāmini': 'she who moves with an intoxicated/graceful gait', 'sairandhrī (implied by the Hindi gloss)': 'a female attendant/maid

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• Sairandhrī (Draupadī in disguise)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights an ethical contrast: a powerful man frames coercive desire as ‘giving happiness,’ underscoring how adharma often disguises itself as benevolence; it invites the reader to judge conduct by consent and righteousness, not by flattering words.

What is happening in the narrative?

In Virāṭa’s court, the woman known as Sairandhrī (Draupadī in disguise) is being addressed with seductive, pressuring language: she is told she does not belong in a place of hardship and should accept ‘supreme pleasure’ from the speaker.