Shloka 283
अश्रमवासिनां विषादः — Lament in Hastināpura after the Elders’ Forest Withdrawal
आगम्य मम पुत्रार्थे सर्वे मृत्युवशं गता: । अनेक देशोंके स्वामी महामनस्वी नरेश मेरे पुत्रकी सहायताके लिये आकर सब-के-सब मृत्युके अधीन हो गये
āgamya mama putrārthe sarve mṛtyuvaśaṃ gatāḥ | aneka-deśānāṃ svāmī mahāmanasvī nareśa mama putrasya sahāyatāyai āgatya sarve kevalaṃ mṛtyor adhīnā abhavan |
毗舍波耶那说道：“他们为我儿之故而来，却都落入死神的权柄之下。那些胸怀宏大、统御多方国土的君王前来扶助我儿，然而无一例外，尽皆归于必死之命。”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even the greatest rulers, despite power and noble intent, cannot escape mortality; attachment to outcomes—such as fighting for a loved one’s cause—still ends under the universal law of death, urging humility and discernment in dharmic action.
The narrator reflects that many mighty kings from various regions came to aid the speaker’s son, but all of them ultimately perished—emphasizing the vast human cost and the inevitability of death that overtakes all participants.