Shloka 5

Devanagari script

व्यतीतायां तु शर्वर्या कृतपौर्वाल्निकक्रिय: । भ्रातृभि: सहितो राजा ददर्शाश्रममण्डलम्‌,रात बीत जानेपर पूर्वाह्नकालिक नैत्यिक नियम पूरे करके राजा युधिष्ठिरने धृतराष्ट्रकी आज्ञा ले भाइयों, अन्तःपुरकी स्त्रियों, सेवकों और पुरोहितोंके साथ सुखपूर्वक भिन्न-भिन्न स्थानोंमें घूम-फिरकर मुनियोंके आश्रम देखे

Transliteration

vyatītāyāṁ tu śarvaryā kṛta-paurvāhṇika-kriyaḥ | bhrātṛbhiḥ sahito rājā dadarśāśrama-maṇḍalam ||

Translation

When the night had passed, the king—having completed the customary morning rites—set out together with his brothers and beheld the precincts of the hermitages. The scene underscores disciplined conduct (daily observances) and respectful engagement with ascetic life after the devastations of war, as the ruler turns toward restraint, reverence, and dharmic order.

Word by Word

• {'vyatītāyām': 'when (it) had passed

• after the lapse (locative absolute)', 'śarvaryām': 'night', 'tu': 'indeed

• then', 'kṛta': 'done

• performed', 'paurvāhṇika-kriyāḥ': 'morning duties/rites (daily observances such as purification, prayers, offerings)', 'bhrātṛbhiḥ': 'with (his) brothers (instrumental plural)', 'sahitaḥ': 'accompanied

• together with', 'rājā': 'the king', 'dadarśa': 'saw

• beheld', 'āśrama': 'hermitage

• ascetic dwelling', 'maṇḍala': 'circle

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• the king (Yudhiṣṭhira)
• brothers (Pāṇḍavas)
• āśrama-maṇḍala (hermitage precincts)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights dharmic discipline: even a king begins the day with prescribed morning observances, showing that righteous rule is grounded in self-regulation and respect for sacred practice, especially in a post-war setting.

What is happening in the narrative?

After night ends, the king completes his morning rituals and, accompanied by his brothers, goes around and views the hermitage precincts—signaling a turn toward the forest-ascetic milieu central to the Āśramavāsika narrative.