Shloka 48
Pāṇḍu’s Marriages, Conquests, and Triumphal Return (पाण्डोर्विवाह-विजय-प्रत्यागमनम्)
वैशम्पायन उवाच एवमुक्क्त्वा महातेजा व्यास: सत्यवतीं तदा | शयने सा च कौसल्या शुचिवस्त्रा हालंकृता
vaiśampāyana uvāca | evam uktvā mahātejā vyāsaḥ satyavatīṃ tadā | śayane sā ca kausalyā śucivastrā alaṅkṛtā |
Vaiśampāyana said: Having spoken thus, the great and radiant sage Vyāsa then addressed Satyavatī: “Let Kausalyā, bathed and purified, clothed in clean garments and adorned, wait upon the bed.” Saying this, he vanished from sight. Thereafter Satyavatī went privately to her daughter-in-law Ambikā, who had come to her in seclusion, and spoke to her words that were beneficial—grounded in dharma and practical welfare—urging her to listen attentively to what was right and fitting in the face of the crisis.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage frames a crisis-response ethic: when a lineage faces extinction, elders may counsel actions aimed at the greater good (artha and welfare) while still presenting them as grounded in dharma—an instance of āpaddharma, where duty is interpreted through necessity, propriety, and communal responsibility.
Vyāsa instructs Satyavatī that Kausalyā should prepare—bathed, in clean clothes, adorned—and wait in the bedchamber. After giving this directive, he disappears. Satyavatī then goes privately to Ambikā and speaks beneficial, dharma-aligned counsel, preparing her for what must be done to address the dynastic emergency.