Shloka 46

Nala’s Embassy to Damayantī and the Gods’ Proposal (नलस्य दूतत्वं देवप्रस्तावश्च)

Devanagari script

अहं वने दुर्वसतीर्वसन्‌ परमदु:खित: । अक्षद्यूताधिकारे च गिर: शृण्वन्‌ सुदारुणा:,“मैं अत्यन्त दुःखी हो बड़ी कठिनाईसे वनमें निवास करता हूँ। जिस सभामें जूआ खेलनेका आयोजन किया गया था, वहाँ प्रतिपक्षी पुरुषोंके मुखसे मुझे अत्यन्त कठोर बातें सुननी पड़ी हैं। इसके सिवा द्यूत आदि कार्योंका उल्लेख करते हुए मेरे दुःखातुर सुहृदोंने जो संतापसूचक बातें कही हैं, वे सब मेरे हृदयमें स्थित हैं। मैं उन सब बातोंको याद करके सारी रात चिन्तामें निमग्न रहता हूँ

Transliteration

ahaṃ vane durvasatīr vasan paramaduḥkhitaḥ | akṣadyūtādhikāre ca giraḥ śṛṇvan sudāruṇāḥ ||

Translation

我在林中栖身，境况艰苦，沉沦于至深的悲苦之中。那掷骰之局所在的殿堂里，我还不得不听对方之人吐出极其刻毒的话语。那些记忆的刺痛仍牢牢扎在我心上；每当追忆，我便整夜陷入忧惧的思虑。

Word by Word

अहम्I

वनेin the forest

दुर्वसतीःhard dwellings / miserable abodes

वसन्dwelling, living

परमदुःखितःextremely sorrowful

अक्षद्यूताधिकारेin the dice-game assembly/occasion (where dice-play was authorized/arranged)

चand

गिरःwords, speeches

शृण्वन्hearing

सुदारुणाःvery harsh/cruel

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vana (forest)

Akṣa (dice)

Dyūta (dice-game/gambling)

Pratipakṣa (opposing party, implied)

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the ethical and psychological aftermath of adharma: reckless gambling and public insult do not end with the event itself; their consequences persist as inner torment. It underscores how dishonor and harsh speech can wound deeply, and how wrongful actions generate long-lasting suffering.

What is happening in the narrative?

A speaker recalls living in the forest under severe hardship after the dice-game episode, remembering the cruel words heard in the gambling hall from the opposing side. Those memories remain fixed in the heart, causing sleepless nights filled with worry and reflection.