शासनाद् धृतराष्ट्रस्य दुर्योधनम् अमर्षणम् ॥
मातुश् च वचनात् क्षत्ता सभां प्रावेशयत् पुनः ॥
स मातुर् वचनाकाङ्क्षी प्रविवेश सभां पुनः ॥
अभिताम्रेक्षणः क्रोधान् निःश्वसन्न् इव पन्नगः ॥
तं प्रविष्टम् अभिप्रेक्ष्य पुत्रम् उत्पथम् आस्थितम् ॥
विगर्हमाणा गान्धारी समर्थं वाक्यम् अब्रवीत् ॥
दुर्योधन निबोधेदं वचनं मम पुत्रक ॥
हितं ते सानुबन्धस्य तथायत्यां सुखोदयम् ॥
भीष्मस्य तु पितुश् चैव मम चापचितिः कृता ॥
भवेद् द्रोणमुखानां च सुहृदां शाम्यता त्वया ॥
śāsanād dhṛtarāṣṭrasya duryodhanam amarṣaṇam ||
mātuś ca vacanāt kṣattā sabhāṃ prāveśayat punaḥ ||
sa mātur vacanākāṅkṣī praviveśa sabhāṃ punaḥ ||
abhitāmrekṣaṇaḥ krodhān niḥśvasann iva pannagaḥ ||
taṃ praviṣṭam abhiprekṣya putram utpatham āsthitam ||
vigarhamāṇā gāndhārī samarthaṃ vākyam abravīt ||
duryodhana nibodhedaṃ vacanaṃ mama putraka ||
hitaṃ te sānubandhasya tathāyatyāṃ sukhodayam ||
bhīṣmasya tu pituś caiva mama cāpacitiḥ kṛtā ||
bhaved droṇamukhānāṃ ca suhṛdāṃ śāmyatā tvayā ||
'"At Dhritarashtra's command, and by the word of his mother, the kshattr again brought the impatient Duryodhana into the assembly. He, awaiting his mother's word, again entered the assembly, his eyes red with anger, breathing heavily like a serpent. Seeing her son who had entered, set upon the wrong path, Gandhari, reproaching him, spoke this effective word: 'Duryodhana, my son, hear this word of mine, beneficial to you together with your kin and bringing happiness in time to come. If you make peace, honor will thereby be shown to Bhishma, your father, to me, and to your friends headed by Drona.'"'
3471a08e5d05 · published Jul 17, 2026, 5:51:08 AM UTC
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Gandhari speaks as a mother and as the bearer of sober dharma: a kingdom cannot be held by will alone if a man has not conquered his own senses. The essence of her speech is not an emotional plea but a political-ethical diagnosis: desire, anger, and greed strip Duryodhana of his helpers, destroy the family, and make war inevitable.