Laurel · Vyasa · The Mahabharata (condensed)

Sisupala's Pride

Vyasa (about 400 BC), translated by Romesh Chunder Dutt · 1899

trochaic octameter · rhyming couplets · 28 lines · from The Mahabharata (condensed)

"Not to Vrishni's uncrowned hero should this reverence be paid,Midst these mighty crowned monarchs in their kingly pomp arrayed,

Ill beseems the good Yudhishthir, royal Pandu's righteous son,Homage to an uncrowned chieftain, to the lowly honour done!

Pandu's sons are yet untutored, and with knowledge yet unblessed,Knowing Bhishma blessed with wisdom hath the rules of courts transgressed,

Learned in the Laws of Duty he hath sinned from partial love,Conscious breach of rules of honour doth our deeper hatred move!

In this throng of crowned monarchs, ruling kings of righteous fame,Can this uncrowned Vrishni chieftain foremost rank and honour claim?

Doth he as a sage and elder claim the homage to him done?Sure his father Vasudeva hath his claims before his son!

Doth he as Yudhishthir's kinsman count as foremost and the best?Royal Drupad by alliance surely might the claim contest!

Doth he as a wise preceptor claim the highest, foremost place,When the great preceptor Drona doth his royal mansion grace?

Unto Krishna as a rishi should the foremost rank be given?Saintly Vyasa claims the honour, Vedic bard inspired by Heaven!

Unto Krishna should we render honour for his warlike fame?Thou, O Bhishma! Death's Subduer, surely might precedence claim!

Unto Krishna for his knowledge should the noble prize we yield?Drona's son unmatched in learning surely might contest the field!

Great Duryodhan midst the princes stands alone without a peer,Kripa priest of royal Kurus, holiest of all priests is here!

Archer Karna--braver archer none there is of mortal birth--Karna learnt his arms from Rama, he who slew the kings of earth!

Wherefore then to unknown Krishna render we this homage free!Saintly priest, nor wise preceptor, king nor foremost chief is he!"

Words in this poem

honour n.: Esteem due or paid to worth; high estimation; respect; consideration; reverence; veneration; manifestation of respect or reverence. [OE. honor, honour, onour, onur, OF. honor, onor, honur, onur, honour, onour, F. honneur, fr. L. honor, honos.]
unblessed a.: Not blest; excluded from benediction; hence, accursed; wretched. [Pref. un- not + blessed, blest.]
kinsman n.: A man of the same race or family; one related by blood.
preceptor n.: One who gives commands, or makes rules; specifically, the master or principal of a school; a teacher; an instructor. [L. praeceptor, fr. praecipere to teach: cf. F. précepteur. See Precept.]
mansion n.: A dwelling place, -- whether a part or whole of a house or other shelter. [OF. mansion, F. maison, fr. L. mansio a staying, remaining, a dwelling, habitation, fr. manere, mansum, to stay, dwell; akin to Gr. Manse, Manor, Menagerie, Men]
saintly a.: Like a saint; becoming a holy person.
subduer n.: One who, or that which, subdues; a conqueror.
wherefore adv.: For which reason; so; -- used relatively. [Where + for.]

Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.

About this text

Sisupala's Pride is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Mahabharata (condensed), Project Gutenberg ebook #19630, the Romesh Chunder Dutt translation; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.

Cite as: Vyasa, Sisupala's Pride, in The Mahabharata (condensed) (1899), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #19630, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/mahabharata/sisupala-s-pride.html, id L15775.

Form and metre

Sisupala's Pride is 28 lines in 14 stanzas of 2 lines each. It is in rhyming couplets, 93% of the lines. The metre is trochaic octameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 88%). 97% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 15.1 syllables. 2 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending.

See other poems in rhyming couplets, other poems in trochaic octameter.

Measured by Laurel's pipeline, not copied from a handbook: how stress and metre are counted, how rhyme is lettered, how a drifted rhyme is found. Where the dictionary cannot confirm a rhyme the letter is withheld, not guessed.

Rhyme words, stanza by stanza

The word that ends each line, lettered by the rhyme it makes; a dash is a line whose rhyme the dictionary could not confirm.

1 AA paid^A · arrayed^A
2 AA son^A · done^A
3 AA unblessed^A · transgressed^A
4 AA love^A · move^A
5 AA fame^A · claim^A
6 AA done^A · son^A
7 AA best^A · contest^A
8 AA place^A · grace^A
10 AA fame^A · claim^A
11 AA yield^A · field^A
12 AA peer^A · here^A
13 AA birth^A · earth^A
14 AA free^A · he^A

Scansion, line by line

Each line with its syllable count and the stresses the words themselves fix: / stressed, ˘ unstressed, · a syllable the word leaves free and the metre decides. Read against trochaic octameter. How this is done.

Line	Syl.	Stress
"Not to Vrishni's uncrowned hero should this reverence be paid,	15	······/˘··/˘˘··
Midst these mighty crowned monarchs in their kingly pomp arrayed,	15	··/˘·˘/···/˘·˘/
Ill beseems the good Yudhishthir, royal Pandu's righteous son,	15	········/˘··/˘·
Homage to an uncrowned chieftain, to the lowly honour done!	15	/˘····/˘··/˘/˘·
Pandu's sons are yet untutored, and with knowledge yet unblessed,	15	··········/˘···
Knowing Bhishma blessed with wisdom hath the rules of courts transgressed,	15	/˘····/˘·····˘/
Learned in the Laws of Duty he hath sinned from partial love,	15	·˘····/˘····/˘·
Conscious breach of rules of honour doth our deeper hatred move!	15	/˘····/˘·//˘/˘·
In this throng of crowned monarchs, ruling kings of righteous fame,	15	·····˘/·/˘··/˘·
Can this uncrowned Vrishni chieftain foremost rank and honour claim?	15	······/˘/···/˘·
Doth he as a sage and elder claim the homage to him done?	15	······/˘··/˘···
Sure his father Vasudeva hath his claims before his son!	15	··/˘···········
Doth he as Yudhishthir's kinsman count as foremost and the best?	15	······/···/····
Royal Drupad by alliance surely might the claim contest!	15	/˘···˘/˘/˘···˘/
Doth he as a wise preceptor claim the highest, foremost place,	15	·····˘/˘··/˘/··
When the great preceptor Drona doth his royal mansion grace?	15	···˘/˘····/˘/˘·
Unto Krishna as a rishi should the foremost rank be given?	16	··/˘······/···/˘
Saintly Vyasa claims the honour, Vedic bard inspired by Heaven!	16	/˘····/˘···˘/·/˘
Unto Krishna should we render honour for his warlike fame?	15	··/˘··/˘/˘··/··
Thou, O Bhishma! Death's Subduer, surely might precedence claim!	15	·····˘/˘/˘·/˘˘·
Unto Krishna for his knowledge should the noble prize we yield?	15	··/˘··/˘··/˘···
Drona's son unmatched in learning surely might contest the field!	15	···˘/·/˘/˘·˘/··
Great Duryodhan midst the princes stands alone without a peer,	15	······/˘·˘/····
Kripa priest of royal Kurus, holiest of all priests is here!	15	····/˘··/˘·····
Archer Karna--braver archer none there is of mortal birth--	15	/˘··/˘/˘····/˘·
Karna learnt his arms from Rama, he who slew the kings of earth!	15	······/˘·······
Wherefore then to unknown Krishna render we this homage free!	15	/˘··˘//˘/˘··/˘·
Saintly priest, nor wise preceptor, king nor foremost chief is he!"	15	/˘···˘/˘··/····

The reader shows the same poem with its rhymes coloured and a stress row above each line, the notes beside their stanzas, and any word's definition on a tap; the analysis page takes the whole book apart. How every part of this site was made.

More by Vyasa

The Mahabharata (condensed)