Shloka 96
नलस्य बाहुकत्वेन ऋतुपर्णनगरप्रवेशः
Nala as Bāhuka enters Ṛtuparṇa’s city
एवमुक्क्त्वा नलस्येष्टां महिषीं पार्थिवात्मजाम् । अन्तर्हितास्तापसास्ते साग्निहोत्राश्रमास्तथा,नलकी प्रियतमा महारानी राजकुमारी दमयन्तीसे ऐसा कहकर वे सभी तपस्वी अग्निहोत्र और आश्रमसहित अदृश्य हो गये
evam uktvā nalasya iṣṭāṁ mahiṣīṁ pārthivātmajām | antarhitās tāpasās te sāgnihotrāśramās tathā ||
فلما قالوا ذلك لِدَمَيَنْتِي—محبوبةِ نَلا وملكتِه، وهي ابنةُ ملك—اختفى أولئك النُّسّاك من الأنظار، ومعهم نيرانُ الأَغْنِيهُوتْرَا المقدّسة ومساكنُ نسكهم.
बृहृदश्च उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the spiritual authority of ascetics: after giving counsel, they withdraw, showing that tapas and sacred observances (like agnihotra) carry a power beyond ordinary social status. It also implies that guidance rooted in dharma is to be received with reverence, even when the advisers are transient or mysterious.
Bṛhadaśva narrates that, after speaking to Damayantī (Nala’s beloved queen), the group of ascetics suddenly becomes invisible—vanishing along with their agnihotra fires and hermitages—marking a dramatic, supernatural transition in the Nala–Damayantī story.