Shloka 2

Yudhiṣṭhira’s Procession, Encampment (Niveśa), and Auspicious Timing for Ritual Action

Devanagari script

रत्नं च यन्मरुत्तेन निहितं वसुधातले । तदवाप कथं चेति तनमे ब्रूहि द्विजोत्तम,जनमेजयने पूछा--ब्रह्मन! महात्मा व्यासका कहा हुआ यह वचन सुनकर राजा युधिष्ठिरने अश्वमेध यज्ञके सम्बन्धमें फिर क्या किया? राजा मरुत्तने जो रत्न पृथ्वीतलपर रख छोड़ा था, उसे उन्होंने किस प्रकार प्राप्त किया? द्विजश्रेष्ठ]ी यह सब मुझे बताइये

Transliteration

Janamejaya uvāca |

ratnaṁ ca yan Maruttena nihitaṁ vasudhā-tale |

tad avāpa kathaṁ ceti tan me brūhi dvijottama ||

Translation

হে দ্বিজোত্তম! রাজা মরুত্ত যে রত্নধন পৃথিবীর উপর ন্যস্ত করেছিলেন, তা কীভাবে প্রাপ্ত হল—আমাকে বলুন। আর মহাত্মা ব্যাসের বচন শুনে শ্রেষ্ঠ রাজা যুধিষ্ঠির অশ্বমেধ সম্বন্ধে পরে কী করলেন—তাও বলুন।

Word by Word

• {'ratnam': 'treasure, jewel, valuable wealth', 'yat': 'which, that which', 'Maruttena': 'by Marutta (instrumental singular)', 'nihitam': 'placed, deposited, stored', 'vasudhā-tale': 'on the surface of the earth (lit. ‘on the ground of the earth’)', 'tat': 'that', 'avāpa': 'obtained, acquired, came to possess', 'katham': 'how?', 'ca': 'and', 'iti': 'thus (quotative particle)', 'tat me brūhi': 'tell that to me', 'dvijottama': 'O best of the twice-born (address to a Brahmin sage)'}

Speaker

जनमेजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Janamejaya
• Marutta
• Yudhiṣṭhira
• Vyāsa
• ratna (treasure)
• vasudhā (earth)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse models dhārmic inquiry: a king seeks clarity from a qualified sage about the rightful acquisition and use of wealth in the context of a major royal rite (Aśvamedha), implying that power and prosperity should be guided by authoritative counsel and ethical purpose.

What is happening in the narrative?

Janamejaya asks the narrator-sage to explain two linked points: what Yudhiṣṭhira did regarding the Aśvamedha after hearing Vyāsa, and how the treasure once deposited by King Marutta on the earth was later obtained.