आसीत् काक्षीवती चास्य भार्या परमसंमता ॥
भद्रा नाम मनुष्येन्द्र रूपेणासदृशी भुवि ॥
कामयाम् आसतुस् तौ तु परस्परम् इति श्रुतिः ॥
स तस्यां कामसंमत्तो यक्ष्माणं समपद्यत ॥
तेनाचिरेण कालेन जगामास्तम् इवांशुमान् ॥
तस्मिन् प्रेते मनुष्येन्द्रे भार्यास्य भृशदुःखिता ॥
āsīt kākṣīvatī cāsya bhāryā paramasaṃmatā ||
bhadrā nāma manuṣyendra rūpeṇāsadṛśī bhuvi ||
kāmayām āsatus tau tu parasparam iti śrutiḥ ||
sa tasyāṃ kāmasaṃmatto yakṣmāṇaṃ samapadyata ||
tenācireṇa kālena jagāmāstam ivāṃśumān ||
tasmin prete manuṣyendre bhāryāsya bhṛśaduḥkhitā ||
"And he had a highly honored wife, daughter of Kakshivat, named Bhadra, o lord of men, unmatched in beauty on earth. And they loved one another, as tradition tells; but he, intoxicated with passion for her, fell ill with consumption and before long set like the sun. When that lord of men died, his wife fell into deep grief".
b276f47d9cd3 · published Jul 12, 2026, 4:41:49 PM UTC
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Here is the turning point of the tale: a mighty king perishes through unrestrained passion. It is telling that the very cause of death is named as excess in love: 'intoxicated with passion, he fell ill with consumption.' Here is a warning about the ruin brought by kama, unbridled desire: even the greatest of men, failing to set a measure to pleasure, destroys himself. This echoes the fate of Pandu's own father, Vichitravirya, who died of the same intemperance, and Pandu's own curse. It is telling that Kunti tells all this to her husband — as if reminding him of measure; but bitterest of all is that the tale leads to the king's death without offspring. Thus scripture shows that even mutual love, lacking restraint, turns into ruin — and thereby prepares the miracle in which love and austerity will overcome death itself.