ततः सा बाष्पकलया वाचा दुःखेन कर्शिता ॥
उवाच दमयन्ती तं नैषधं करुणं वचः ॥
उद्वेपते मे हृदयं सीदन्त्य् अङ्गानि सर्वशः ॥
तव पार्थिव संकल्पं चिन्तयन्त्याः पुनः पुनः ॥
हृतराज्यं हृतधनं विवस्त्रं क्षुच्छ्रमान्वितम् ॥
कथम् उत्सृज्य गच्छेयम् अहं त्वां विजने वने ॥
श्रान्तस्य ते क्षुधार्तस्य चिन्तयानस्य तत् सुखम् ॥
वने घोरे महाराज नाशयिष्यामि ते क्लमम् ॥
न च भार्यासमं किं चिद् विद्यते भिषजां मतम् ॥
औषधं सर्वदुःखेषु सत्यम् एतद् ब्रवीमि ते ॥
नल उवाच
एवम् एतद् यथात्थ त्वं दमयन्ति सुमध्यमे ॥
नास्ति भार्यासमं मित्रं नरस्यार्तस्य भेषजम् ॥
न चाहं त्यक्तुकामस् त्वां किमर्थं भीरु शङ्कसे ॥
त्यजेयम् अहम् आत्मानं न त्व् एव त्वाम् अनिन्दिते ॥
दमयन्त्य् उवाच
यदि मां त्वं महाराज न विहातुम् इहेच्छसि ॥
तत् किमर्थं विदर्भाणां पन्थाः समुपदिश्यते ॥
अवैमि चाहं नृपते न त्वं मां त्यक्तुम् अर्हसि ॥
चेतसा त्व् अपकृष्टेन मां त्यजेथा महापते ॥
पन्थानं हि ममाभीक्ष्णम् आख्यासि नरसत्तम ॥
अतोनिमित्तं शोकं मे वर्धयस्य् अमरप्रभ ॥
यदि चायम् अभिप्रायस् तव राजन् व्रजेद् इति ॥
सहिताव् एव गच्छावो विदर्भान् यदि मन्यसे ॥
विदर्भराजस् तत्र त्वां पूजयिष्यति मानद ॥
तेन त्वं पूजितो राजन् सुखं वत्स्यसि नो गृहे ॥
tataḥ sā bāṣpakalayā vācā duḥkhena karśitā ||
uvāca damayantī taṃ naiṣadhaṃ karuṇaṃ vacaḥ ||
udvepate me hṛdayaṃ sīdanty aṅgāni sarvaśaḥ ||
tava pārthiva saṃkalpaṃ cintayantyāḥ punaḥ punaḥ ||
hṛtarājyaṃ hṛtadhanaṃ vivastraṃ kṣucchramānvitam ||
katham utsṛjya gaccheyam ahaṃ tvāṃ vijane vane ||
śrāntasya te kṣudhārtasya cintayānasya tat sukham ||
vane ghore mahārāja nāśayiṣyāmi te klamam ||
na ca bhāryāsamaṃ kiṃ cid vidyate bhiṣajāṃ matam ||
auṣadhaṃ sarvaduḥkheṣu satyam etad bravīmi te ||
nala uvāca
evam etad yathāttha tvaṃ damayanti sumadhyame ||
nāsti bhāryāsamaṃ mitraṃ narasyārtasya bheṣajam ||
na cāhaṃ tyaktukāmas tvāṃ kimarthaṃ bhīru śaṅkase ||
tyajeyam aham ātmānaṃ na tv eva tvām anindite ||
damayanty uvāca
yadi māṃ tvaṃ mahārāja na vihātum ihecchasi ||
tat kimarthaṃ vidarbhāṇāṃ panthāḥ samupadiśyate ||
avaimi cāhaṃ nṛpate na tvaṃ māṃ tyaktum arhasi ||
cetasā tv apakṛṣṭena māṃ tyajethā mahāpate ||
panthānaṃ hi mamābhīkṣṇam ākhyāsi narasattama ||
atonimittaṃ śokaṃ me vardhayasy amaraprabha ||
yadi cāyam abhiprāyas tava rājan vrajed iti ||
sahitāv eva gacchāvo vidarbhān yadi manyase ||
vidarbharājas tatra tvāṃ pūjayiṣyati mānada ||
tena tvaṃ pūjito rājan sukhaṃ vatsyasi no gṛhe ||
Damayanti, worn down by grief, said to the lord of Nishadha through her tears: "My heart trembles, all my limbs grow faint, as I think again and again of your intention. How could I leave you in an empty forest -- without kingdom, without wealth, without clothing, worn out by hunger and weariness? When you, weary and tormented by hunger and thinking of your former happiness, are in the dread forest, I will drive away your exhaustion. In the opinion of physicians, there is no medicine in any suffering equal to a wife; this I tell you in truth." Nala answered: "It is as you say, Damayanti: for a suffering man there is no friend and no medicine equal to a wife. I have no wish to leave you; why do you fear it? I would abandon my own self, but never you, blameless one." Damayanti said: "If you do not wish to leave me, why do you point out the road to Vidarbha? I know, O king, that you ought not to leave me, but with a mind drawn away you might do so. You keep telling me the way again and again, and by this, without cause, you deepen my sorrow. But if your thought is indeed 'let her go,' then, if you think it right, let us go to Vidarbha together. The king of Vidarbha will honor you there, and honored by him, you will live happily in our house."
141db597a364 · प्रकाशित 16 जुल॰ 2026, 4:54:09 pm UTC
उपलब्ध भाषाएँRUENश्लोक बदलें इन कुंजियों से
Damayanti sees Nala's hidden thought and answers not with reproach but with togetherness. For her, marriage does not mean parting ways in misfortune, but sharing a single path through it.