Shloka 1
कुन्ती–व्याससंवादः
Kuntī–Vyāsa Dialogue on Durvāsā’s Boon and Karṇa’s Birth
भीकम (2 अमान एकोनचत्वारिशोड ध्याय: राजा युधिष्ठिरद्वारा धृतराष्ट्र गान्धारी और कुन्ती--इन तीनोंकी हड्डियोंको गज्जममें प्रवाहित कराना तथा श्राद्धकर्म करना नारद उवाच नासौ वृथाग्निना दग्धो यथा तत्र श्रुतं मया । वैचित्रवीर्यो नृपतिस्तत् ते वक्ष्यामि सुव्रत
nāsau vṛthāgninā dagdho yathā tatra śrutaṃ mayā | vaicitravīryo nṛpatistad te vakṣyāmi suvrata ||
Nārada said: “O king of steadfast vows, the royal son of Vicitravīrya—Dhṛtarāṣṭra—was not cremated in vain by ordinary fire. I shall tell you exactly what I heard there about this matter.”
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames death and funerary acts within dharma: outward rites are not merely ‘ordinary’ or ‘vain’ when connected to a deeper moral and spiritual account. Nārada emphasizes truthful reporting and the unseen significance behind events, urging the king to understand causes and meanings beyond appearances.
Nārada addresses Yudhiṣṭhira and introduces an explanation about Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s cremation, stating it was not a pointless burning by common fire. He signals that he will recount what he heard ‘there,’ setting up a fuller account of the circumstances and their significance.