Shloka 25
अध्याय १५ (Āśramavāsika-parva): धृतराष्ट्रस्य वनवासानुज्ञायाचनम् — Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s renewed plea for consent to forest-dwelling
यदा राज्यमिदं कुन्ति भोक्तव्यं पुत्रनिर्जितम् । प्राप्तव्या राजधर्माश्व तदेयं ते कुतो मति:,“माताजी! जब पुत्रोंके जीते हुए इस राज्यके भोगनेका अवसर आया और राजधर्मके पालनकी सुविधा प्राप्त हुई, तब आपको ऐसी बुद्धि कैसे हो गयी?
yadā rājyam idaṃ kunti bhoktavyaṃ putranirjitam | prāptavyā rājadharmāś ca tadevaṃ te kuto matiḥ ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “O Kuntī, when the time had come for you to enjoy this kingdom won by your sons, and when the opportunity to uphold the duties of kingship had been secured, how did such a resolve arise in you?”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical tension between rightful enjoyment of hard-won sovereignty and the sudden turn toward renunciation. It frames kingship as a dharmic responsibility (rājadharma), not merely a prize, and questions the timing and motive of withdrawing from that duty.
Vaiśampāyana addresses Kuntī, expressing surprise: after the Pāṇḍavas have secured the kingdom and the conditions for proper governance are in place, he asks how Kuntī has come to a mindset that turns away from enjoying or participating in that newly established order.