Shloka 13
Adhyaya 11 — Draupadī’s Grief, Demand for Justice, and Bhīma’s Departure
“अपने वीर पुत्रोंको क्षत्रिय-धर्मके अनुसार मारा गया सुनकर भी आप उपप्लव्यनगरमें मेरे साथ रहते हुए उन्हें सर्वथा भूल जायँगे; यह भी भाग्यकी ही बात है ।।
vaiśampāyana uvāca | prasuptānāṁ vadhāṁ śrutvā droṇinā pāpakarmaṇā | śokas tapati māṁ pārtha hutāśana ivāśrayam ||
毗舍摩波耶那说：“噢，帕尔塔啊！听闻我的儿子们在沉睡之时被德罗那之子——行恶作罪者——所杀，悲痛便如烈火焚烧我，正如火焰吞噬它所依凭的薪柴。纵然明知武士依刹帝利之法而战而亡，此等杀戮之法却违逆道德秩序，使正当的哀恸化作吞噬一切的烈焰。”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse contrasts lawful kṣatriya combat with an unethical act: killing sleeping warriors. It shows that grief is intensified when death occurs through adharma, and it frames moral injury as a consuming inner fire.
After the nocturnal slaughter in the Pāṇḍava camp, the speaker reports the news that the sons were killed while asleep by Droṇa’s son (Aśvatthāman). Addressing Arjuna as Pārtha, he describes how this report makes sorrow burn within him like fire consuming its own support.