Shloka 4
धृतराष्ट्रस्य पश्चात्तापः तथा वनप्रस्थानानुज्ञा | Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Remorse and Request for Forest-Retirement
इस प्रकार श्रीमहाभारत आश्रमवासिकपव॑के अन्तर्गत आश्रमवासपर्वमें व्यायकी आज्ञाविषयक चौथा अध्याय पूरा हुआ,उस समय उनके पीछे-पीछे ज्ञानी विदुर, सारथि संजय तथा शरद्वानके पुत्र महाधनुर्धर कृपाचार्य भी गये ।।
sa praviśya gṛhaṃ rājan kṛta-pūrvāhṇika-kriyaḥ | tarpayitvā dvija-śreṣṭhān āhāram akarot tadā ||
Vaiśampāyana sprach: O König, nachdem er das Haus betreten und die vorgeschriebenen religiösen Pflichten des Vormittags vollzogen hatte, sättigte er die vornehmsten Brahmanen mit Speise und Trank; dann nahm er, der rechten Ordnung gemäß, selbst sein Mahl ein.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights dharmic order in daily life: complete prescribed rites first, honour and nourish worthy guests—especially learned Brahmins—and only then attend to one’s own needs. It presents restraint and prioritizing duty over personal comfort as ethical conduct.
The person described enters the house, performs the forenoon religious observances, offers food and drink to eminent Brahmins until they are satisfied, and afterward takes his own meal—showing a household scene governed by ritual propriety and hospitality.