Shloka 30
ययाति–देवयानी संवादः
Yayāti–Devayānī Dialogue and Śukra’s Consent
सा दृष्टवा रहिता गाश्न॒ कचेनाभ्यागता वनात् । उवाच वचन काले देवयान्यथ भारत,जनमेजय! जब देवयानीने देखा, गौएँ तो वनसे लौट आयीं पर उनके साथ कच नहीं हैं, तब उसने उस समय अपने पितासे इस प्रकार कहा
sā dṛṣṭvā rahitā gāś ca kacenābhyāgatā vanāt | uvāca vacanaṃ kāle devayāny atha bhārata janamejaya ||
Seeing that the cows had returned from the forest without Kaca, Devayānī spoke at once, at that very moment, to her father—O Bhārata, O Janamejaya. The scene underscores her anxious concern and the moral tension around responsibility and protection: the safe return of the herd is not enough when a trusted companion is missing.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights ethical responsibility and relational duty: outcomes (the cows returning) do not erase accountability when a person entrusted with a task or companionship is missing. Devayānī’s immediate response reflects care, vigilance, and the moral priority of safeguarding individuals, not merely completing an external objective.
Devayānī notices that the cows have come back from the forest but Kaca has not returned with them. Alarmed, she promptly speaks to her father (implied by context), and the narrator Vaiśampāyana frames this for King Janamejaya, continuing the Kaca–Devayānī episode in the Ādi Parva.