Shloka 4
Gāndhārī’s Petition for a Vision of the Departed (गान्धार्याः प्रार्थना—दिव्यदर्शनप्रसङ्गः)
जिन बाहुबलशाली नरेशके सौ पुत्र थे, जो स्वयं भी दस हजार हाथियोंके समान बलवान थे, वे ही दावानलसे जलकर मरे हैं, यह कितने दुःखकी बात है? ।।
yudhiṣṭhira uvāca |
yaṃ purā paryavījanta tālavṛntair varastriyaḥ |
taṃ gṛdhrāḥ paryavījanta dāvāgniparikālītam ||
尤狄史提罗说道：“那位拥有百子、其身力如万象的君王，竟被林火焚死——何其哀痛！昔日，贵妇们以棕榈叶扇从四面为他送风；如今，他被野火灼焦，唯有秃鹫以双翼为他‘扇风’。唉，命运翻覆，何其凄然！”
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores impermanence and the moral shock of worldly reversal: those once honored and comforted can, by fate and the consequences of life, meet an end marked by helplessness. It invites detachment from pride in power and status and compassion for the fallen.
Yudhiṣṭhira laments the tragic end of the elder Kuru figures who died in a forest fire. He contrasts their former royal comfort—being fanned by noble women—with their present condition, where vultures hover and beat their wings over the burned bodies.