Shloka 13
Uttanka’s Inquiry and Vāsudeva’s Adhyātma Exposition
Guṇa–Ritual–Immanence Teaching
“परंतप! क्या पाण्डुके पाँचों पुत्र और धृतराष्ट्रके भी सभी आत्मज संसारमें तुम्हारे साथ सुखपूर्वक विचर सकेंगे? ।। स्वराष्ट्रे ते च राजान: कच्चित् प्राप्स्यन्ति वै सुखम् । कौरवेषु प्रशान्तेषु त्वया नाथेन केशव,“केशव! तुम-जैसे रक्षक एवं स्वामीके द्वारा कौरवोंके शान्त कर दिये जानेपर अब पाण्डवनरेशोंको अपने राज्यमें सुख तो मिलेगा न?
Vaiśampāyana uvāca: Parantapa! kiṃ pāṇḍoḥ pañca putrāś ca dhṛtarāṣṭrasya ca sarve ātmajāḥ saṃsāre tvayā saha sukhapūrvakaṃ vicarituṃ śakṣyanti? Svarāṣṭre te ca rājānaḥ kaccit prāpsyanti vai sukham, kauraveṣu praśānteṣu tvayā nāthena keśava?
Vaiśampāyana said: “O scorcher of foes! Will the five sons of Pāṇḍu, and all the sons of Dhṛtarāṣṭra as well, be able to move about in the world together with you in peace and happiness? And, Keśava—now that the Kauravas have been pacified by you, their protector and lord—will those Pāṇḍava kings truly obtain happiness in their own realm?”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a moral-political concern after conflict: true victory is measured not only by conquest but by the restoration of social harmony—whether former rivals can coexist safely, and whether rightful rulers can enjoy peace in their own realm under a stabilizing protector.
Vaiśampāyana reports an anxious inquiry addressed to Keśava (Kṛṣṇa): after the Kauravas have been subdued and calmed, will the Pāṇḍavas find secure happiness in their kingdom, and can both the Pāṇḍavas and Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s sons live in the world without renewed hostility?