Shloka 90
Duḥṣantasya Vana-praveśaḥ
King Duḥṣanta’s Entry into the Forest Hunt
प्रभुर्वरिष्ठो वरदो वैशम्पायनमेव च । संहितास्तै: पृथक्त्वेन भारतस्य प्रकाशिता:,सर्वश्रेष्ठ वरदायक भगवान् व्यासने चारों वेदों तथा पाँचवें वेद महाभारतका अध्ययन सुमन्तु, जैमिनि, पैल, अपने पुत्र शुकदेव तथा मुझ वैशम्पायनको कराया। फिर उन सबने पृथक्-पृथक् महाभारतकी संहिताएँ प्रकाशित की
prabhur variṣṭho varado vaiśampāyanam eva ca | saṁhitās taiḥ pṛthaktvena bhāratasya prakāśitāḥ ||
Dāśa said: “That supreme lord, the most excellent and the bestower of boons—Vyāsa—taught the study of the four Vedas and also the fifth Veda, the Mahābhārata, to Sumantu, Jaimini, Paila, his own son Śukadeva, and to me, Vaiśampāyana. Thereafter, each of them, separately, made known and promulgated distinct recensions (saṁhitās) of the Mahābhārata.”
दाश उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse emphasizes the sanctity and reliability of the Mahābhārata through its disciplined transmission: Vyāsa teaches it within a guru–disciple lineage, and multiple learned disciples preserve and promulgate distinct recensions. Ethically, it highlights responsibility in preserving knowledge and the authority that comes from faithful learning and teaching.
Dāśa reports that Vyāsa instructed several disciples—including Vaiśampāyana—in the Vedas and the Mahābhārata, and that these disciples later disseminated separate compiled versions (saṁhitās) of the epic.