Shloka 86
समन्तपञ्चक-आख्यानम् तथा अक्षौहिणी-प्रमाणनिर्णयः
Samantapañcaka Narrative and the Measure of an Akṣauhiṇī
सम्भवो जतुवेश्माख्यं हिडिम्बबकयोर्वध: । तथा चैत्रर॒थं देव्या: पाज्चाल्याश्व॒ स्वयंवर:
Sambhavo jatuveśmākhyam Hiḍimbabakayor vadhaḥ | tathā Caitrarathaṃ devyāḥ Pāñcālyāś ca svayaṃvaraḥ ||
Rama said: “(There are accounts of) the birth (of the heroes), the episode known as the House of Lac, the slaying of Hiḍimba and Baka, and likewise the Caitraratha episode, and the princess Pāñcālī’s svayaṃvara.”
राम उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights dharma in action through key episodes: resisting deceit and safeguarding life (the lac-house plot), removing predatory threats to society (slaying man-eaters), and upholding orderly, publicly sanctioned choice and alliance (svayaṃvara). Together they frame heroism as protection, restraint, and responsibility rather than mere violence.
Rama enumerates major well-known episodes: the beginnings (birth/origin accounts), the ‘House of Lac’ incident, the killings of Hiḍimba and Baka, the Caitraratha episode, and Pāñcālī (Draupadī)’s svayaṃvara—functioning as a compact list of prominent events within the epic’s early narrative.