Shloka 111
अनुक्रमणिकाध्यायः (Anukramaṇikā Adhyāya) — Invocation, Narrator Frame, and Textual Scope
युधिष्ठिरो धर्ममयो महाद्रुम: स्कन्धो<र्जुनो भीमसेनो5स्य शाखा: । माद्रीसुतौ पुष्पफले समद्धे मूलं कृष्णो ब्रह्म च ब्राह्मणाश्व॒,युधिष्ठिर धर्ममय विशाल वृक्ष हैं। अर्जुन स्कनध, भीमसेन शाखा और माद्रीनन्दन इसके समृद्ध फल-पुष्प हैं। श्रीकृष्ण, वेद और ब्राह्मण ही इस वृक्षके मूल (जड़) हैं"
yudhiṣṭhiro dharmamayo mahādrumaḥ skandho 'rjuno bhīmaseno 'sya śākhāḥ | mādrīsutau puṣpaphale samṛddhe mūlaṃ kṛṣṇo brahma ca brāhmaṇāś ca ||
Yudhiṣṭhira is a great tree made of dharma; Arjuna is its trunk, and Bhīmasena its branches. The two sons of Mādrī are its flourishing flowers and fruits. Its roots are Kṛṣṇa, the Veda (brahman), and the brāhmaṇas—showing that the Pāṇḍavas’ strength and prosperity rest upon divine guidance, sacred knowledge, and the custodians of dharma.
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that true power and prosperity are organic outcomes of dharma: leadership grounded in righteousness (Yudhiṣṭhira) is supported by strength and capability (Arjuna, Bhīma), bears refined results (Nakula, Sahadeva), and ultimately depends on deep foundations—divine guidance (Kṛṣṇa), sacred knowledge (Veda), and the ethical-religious order upheld by brāhmaṇas.
A speaker praises and characterizes the Pāṇḍavas through an extended tree metaphor, mapping each brother (and their supports) onto parts of a flourishing tree to convey their unity, virtues, and the sources that sustain their greatness.