Shloka 56
Adhyāya 123 — Droṇa’s Pedagogy: Arjuna’s Preeminence, Ekalavya’s Self-Training, and the Bhāsa-Lakṣya Trial
युगपस्तृणप: काष्णिनिन्दिश्षित्ररथस्तथा । त्रयोदश: शालिशिरा: पर्जन्यश्व चतुर्दश:,भीमसेन तथा उग्रसेन, ऊर्णायु और अनघ, गोपति एवं धृतराष्ट्र, सूर्यवर्चा तथा आठवें युगप, तृणप, कार्ष्णि, नन्दि एवं चित्ररथ, तेरहवें शालिशिरा और चौदहवें पर्जन्य, पंद्रहवें कलि और सोलहवें नारद, ऋत्वा और बृहत्त्वा, बृहक एवं महामना कराल, ब्रह्मचारी तथा विख्यात गुणवान् सुवर्ण, विश्वावसु एवं भुमन्यु, सुचन्द्र और शरु तथा गीतमाधुर्यसे सम्पन्न सुविख्यात हाहा और हूहू--राजन्! ये सब देवगन्धर्व वहाँ पधारे थे
yugapastṛṇapaḥ kārṣṇinandiś citrarathas tathā | trayodaśaḥ śāliśirāḥ parjanyaśvaś caturdaśaḥ || bhīmasena tathā ugrasenau ūrṇāyur anaghaḥ | gopatiś ca dhṛtarāṣṭraḥ sūryavarcāś ca aṣṭamaḥ || yugapaḥ tṛṇapaḥ kārṣṇi nandiś citrarathaḥ punaḥ | śāliśirā trayodaśaḥ parjanyaśvaś caturdaśaḥ || pañcadaśaḥ kaliḥ ṣoḍaśo nāradaḥ | ṛtvā bṛhattvā bṛhakaś ca mahāmanā karālaḥ || brahmacārī tathā vikhyāto guṇavān suvarṇaḥ | viśvāvasuś ca bhūmanyuḥ sucandraḥ śaruś ca || gītamādhuryasaṃpannau suvikhyātau hāhā hūhū | rājan ete sarve devagandharvāḥ tatra samāgatāḥ ||
Vaiśampāyana said: Yugapa, Tṛṇapa, Kārṣṇi, Nandi, and Citraratha; Śāliśirā as the thirteenth and Parjanyaśva as the fourteenth; Bhīmasena and Ugrasena; Ūrṇāyu and Anagha; Gopati and Dhṛtarāṣṭra; and Sūryavarcā—along with others—came there. Again were named Yugapa, Tṛṇapa, Kārṣṇi, Nandi, and Citraratha; Śāliśirā as the thirteenth and Parjanyaśva as the fourteenth; Kali as the fifteenth and Nārada as the sixteenth; Ṛtvā, Bṛhattvā, Bṛhaka, and the great-minded Karāla; the brahmacārin, the renowned and virtuous Suvarṇa; Viśvāvasu and Bhūmanyu; Sucandra and Śaru; and the celebrated Hāhā and Hūhū, famed for the sweetness of their song. O King, all these divine Gandharvas arrived at that gathering.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage primarily functions as an enumerative catalogue, highlighting the Mahābhārata’s vision of a cosmos where divine artists (Gandharvas) participate in sacred and royal assemblies. Ethically, it underscores reverence for ordered tradition (naming, lineage, and roles) and the cultural value placed on disciplined excellence—especially music, virtue (guṇavān), and ascetic restraint (brahmacārī).
Vaiśampāyana lists the Gandharvas who arrived at a particular gathering, naming many individually (including famed singers Hāhā and Hūhū). The verse is part of a larger scene-setting sequence that establishes who is present and the grandeur of the assembly.