Shloka 22
अश्वमेध-उपदेशः तथा मरुत्त-यज्ञ-धन-प्रसङ्गः
Counsel on Aśvamedha and the Marutta-treasure episode
युधिछिर उवाच कथं यज्ञे मरुत्तस्य द्रविणं तत् समाचितम् | कम्मिंश्व काले स नूपो बभूव वदतां वर
yudhiṣṭhira uvāca kathaṃ yajñe maruttasya draviṇaṃ tat samācitam | kasmiṃś ca kāle sa nṛpo babhūva vadatāṃ vara ||
যুধিষ্ঠির বললেন—হে বক্তাদের শ্রেষ্ঠ! মরুত্তের যজ্ঞে সেই ধন কীভাবে সঞ্চিত হয়েছিল? আর সেই রাজা কোন কালে পৃথিবীতে আবির্ভূত হয়েছিলেন? বলুন।
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse models dhārmic inquiry: a righteous king seeks to understand not only the grandeur of a sacrifice but also the legitimate means by which its wealth was gathered and the historical context of the ruler—linking ritual splendor to ethical sourcing and proper knowledge.
Yudhiṣṭhira addresses a revered narrator (‘best of speakers’) and asks two connected questions about King Marutta: how the immense resources for Marutta’s yajña were accumulated, and when Marutta lived/appeared on earth, setting up an explanatory account.