पाञ्चालराजस् तु विषण्णरूपस्; तान् पाण्डवान् अप्रतिविन्दमानः ॥
धृष्टद्युम्नं पर्यपृच्छन् महात्मा; क्व सा गता केन नीता च कृष्णा ॥
कच्चिन् न शूद्रेण न हीनजेन; वैश्येन वा करदेनोपपन्ना ॥
कच्चित् पदं मूर्ध्नि न मे निदिग्धं; कच्चिन् माला पतिता न श्मशाने ॥
pāñcālarājas tu viṣaṇṇarūpas; tān pāṇḍavān aprativindamānaḥ ||
dhṛṣṭadyumnaṃ paryapṛcchan mahātmā; kva sā gatā kena nītā ca kṛṣṇā ||
kaccin na śūdreṇa na hīnajena; vaiśyena vā karadenopapannā ||
kaccit padaṃ mūrdhni na me nidigdhaṃ; kaccin mālā patitā na śmaśāne ||
Drupada said: "The king of Panchala, downcast, not recognizing in them the Pandavas, asked Dhrishtadyumna, great of soul: 'Where has Krishna gone, and by whom has she been taken? Has she not fallen to a shudra, or to one of low birth, or to a tribute-paying vaishya? Has my head not been trampled by that? Has the garland not fallen upon an ash-heap?'"
64eb0a354e37 · published Jul 12, 2026, 5:44:41 PM UTC
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Here a father worries over the worthiness of the one to whom his daughter has fallen. Drupada's anxiety is telling: has his daughter not been given to someone unworthy? He fears dishonor upon his line. His concerns about the suitor's rank reflect the era's regard for a marriage befitting one's station; here, by the light of dharma, one sees not contempt for people of other birth, but a father's care for a husband worthy of his daughter. Telling, too, is the image of "a garland fallen upon an ash-heap": a daughter is a sacred thing, and to give her to one unworthy is like casting a garland into an unclean place. So the scripture reveals a loving father's anxiety for his daughter's honor, and beneath it lies his hope for the worthiest of men.