Shloka 31
कपोती-विलापः स्वर्गसंयोगश्च
The Dove’s Lament and Celestial Reunion
दिशो विलोकयामास विगाढ़ां प्रेक्ष्य शर्वरीम् दूरतो मे निवेशश्व अस्माद् देशादिति प्रभो
diśo vilokayāmāsa vigāḍhāṁ prekṣya śarvarīm | dūrato me niveśaś ca asmād deśād iti prabho prabho ||
毗湿摩说道：“见长夜愈发浓黑，他便环视四方。望着那深沉的幽暗，他在心中自语：‘噢，主啊，我的居所离此地甚远。’ 天空澄明、群星满布、无云无翳，宛如一湖清水缀以尽放白莲（俱牟陀）；然而猎人寒战不止，仍扫视诸方，为归途遥远而忧惧。”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights practical discernment and human vulnerability: even amid a beautiful, clear night sky, one must attend to real conditions—cold, darkness, distance—and act with foresight. It subtly supports dharma as prudent, reality-based conduct rather than mere aesthetic delight.
A hunter, shivering in the cold, looks to all directions and, seeing the night’s deep darkness, thinks to himself that his home is far from where he is. Bhīṣma narrates this scene as part of the broader instruction in Śānti Parva.