Shloka 13
Ulūka’s Provocation and Keśava’s Counter-Message (उलूकदूत्ये केशवप्रत्युत्तरम्)
श्रूयते हि पुरा गीत: श्लोको5यं भरतर्षभ । प्रह्मदेनाथ भद्रें ते हृते राज्ये तु दैवतैः,“भरतश्रेष्ठ! तुम्हारा कल्याण हो। सुना जाता है कि पूर्वकालमें जब देवताओंने प्रह्नादका राज्य छीन लिया था, तब उन्होंने इस शलोकका गान किया था
śrūyate hi purā gītaḥ śloko ’yaṃ bharatarṣabha | prahrādenātha bhadraṃ te hṛte rājye tu daivataiḥ ||
Sañjaya sprach: „O Stier unter den Bharatas, Heil sei dir. Man hört, dass in alter Zeit eben dieser Vers von Prahlāda gesungen wurde. Als die Götter ihm sein Reich genommen hatten, sprach er diese Worte…“
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a traditional exemplum: even when sovereignty is lost by forces beyond one’s control (here, the gods), a righteous person like Prahlāda responds with composed speech and auspicious intent, implying steadiness, non-despair, and adherence to dharma amid reversals.
Sañjaya introduces an old, well-known śloka, saying it was sung long ago by Prahlāda at the moment his kingdom was taken away by the gods; this serves as a precedent to illuminate the present political crisis in the Udyoga Parva.