Shloka 35
Rājasūyābhiṣeka-darśana: Duryodhana’s Observation of the Consecration
वैश्या इव महीपाला द्विजातिपरिवेषका: । न सा श्रीर्देवराजस्य यमस्य वरुणस्य च । गुहाकाधिपतेर्वापि या श्री राजन् युधिष्ठिरे
vaiśyā iva mahīpālā dvijāti-pariveṣakāḥ | na sā śrīr devarājasya yamasya varuṇasya ca | guhākādhipater vāpi yā śrī rājan yudhiṣṭhire ||
Duryodhana sprach: „Jene Könige, als wären sie bloße Vaiśyas, reichen den Zweimalgeborenen Speise dar. O König, der Glanz und Wohlstand, die bei Yudhiṣṭhira ruhen, finden sich nicht einmal bei Indra, nicht bei Yama, nicht bei Varuṇa, ja nicht einmal bei Kubera, dem Herrn der Yakṣas.“
दुर्योधन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how outward prosperity and honor can provoke envy and distorted judgment: Duryodhana interprets acts of dharmic hospitality toward brāhmaṇas as humiliating for kings, revealing how pride can invert ethical values.
In the context of Yudhiṣṭhira’s grand royal rite and courtly magnificence, Duryodhana observes kings serving the twice-born and, stung by comparison, declares that Yudhiṣṭhira’s fortune surpasses even that of major deities—an admission that intensifies his resentment.