Shloka 86
Aśvamedha-saṃbhāra: Return of the Horse, Auspicious Timing, and Construction of the Yajña Enclosure
अर्जुनका यह संदेश सुनकर धर्मराज युधिष्ठिरने उसका हृदयसे अभिनन्दन किया और इस प्रकार कहा ।। इति श्रीमहाभारते आश्वमेधिके पर्वणि अनुगीतापर्वणि अश्वमेधारम्भे षडशीतितमो<ध्याय:
arjunakā yaḥ saṃdeśaṃ śrutvā dharmarājo yudhiṣṭhiraḥ tasya hṛdayena abhinandanaṃ kṛtvā evaṃ uvāca | iti śrīmahābhārate āśvamedhike parvaṇi anugītāparvaṇi aśvamedhārambhe ṣaḍaśītitamo 'dhyāyaḥ ||
Hearing the message brought from Arjuna, King Yudhiṣṭhira—steadfast in dharma—welcomed it with heartfelt approval and then spoke as follows. Thus ends the eighty-sixth chapter in the Aśvamedhika Parva of the Mahābhārata, within the Anugītā section, at the commencement of the Aśvamedha sacrifice.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights dhārmic leadership: Yudhiṣṭhira responds to counsel and news not with impulsiveness but with heartfelt, principled acceptance, preparing to act within the ethical framework of royal duty—especially significant at the start of a major rite like the Aśvamedha.
A message associated with Arjuna is heard by Yudhiṣṭhira. He warmly approves it and begins to speak, marking a transition into the next portion of the story set at the commencement of the Aśvamedha sacrifice in the Aśvamedhika Parva (Anugītā section).