Shloka 9
Udyoga-parva Adhyāya 71 — Kṣatra-dharma Counsel, Public Legitimacy, and Mobilization
यत् तद् द्वादश वर्षाणि वनेषु हुषिता वयम् । छटद्माना शरदं चैकां धृतराष्ट्रस्य शासनात्
yad tad dvādaśa varṣāṇi vaneṣu uṣitā vayam | chadmanā śaradaṃ caikāṃ dhṛtarāṣṭrasya śāsanāt, prabho |
যুধিষ্ঠির বললেন—হে প্রভু! ধৃতরাষ্ট্রের আদেশে আমরা বারো বছর অরণ্যে বাস করেছি এবং এক বছর গোপনে (অজ্ঞাতবাসে) কাটিয়েছি।
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse emphasizes dharma as fidelity to one’s pledged word: Yudhiṣṭhira grounds moral and political legitimacy in strict observance of the agreed exile and incognito terms, supported by credible witnesses (the Brahmins).
In the Udyoga Parva’s pre-war negotiations, Yudhiṣṭhira asserts that the Pāṇḍavas completed the required twelve-year forest exile and one-year concealed stay under Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s order, and that they did not break their vow—thereby strengthening their rightful claim and moral standing.