Shloka 5
नीलाक्षस्तत्र नकुलो रुक्मपार्श्वस्तदानघ । वज्जाशनिसमं नादममुज्चद् वसुधाधिप,भरतश्रेष्ठ] भारत! उस यज्ञमें श्रेष्ठ ब्राह्मणों, जातिवालों, सम्बन्धियों, बन्धु-बान्धवों, अन्धों तथा दीन-दरिद्रोंके तृप्त हो जानेपर जब युधिष्ठिरके महान् दानका चारों ओर शोर हो गया और धर्मराजके मस्तकपर फूलोंकी वर्षा होने लगी उसी समय वहाँ एक नेवला आया। अनघ! उसकी आँखें नीली थीं और उसके शरीरके एक ओरका भाग सोनेका था। पृथ्वीनाथ! उसने आते ही एक बार वज्रके समान भयंकर गर्जना की ५ 0७0 + 722 0नलम आह औँ! ज ७७० + न ++ (४ कि जे 4
vaiśaṃpāyana uvāca |
nīlākṣas tatra nakulo rukmapārśvas tadānagha |
vajrāśanisamaṃ nādam amuñcad vasudhādhipa ||
Vaiśaṃpāyana said: “Then, O sinless one, there appeared a mongoose with blue eyes and one side of its body golden. O lord of the earth, as soon as it arrived, it let out a single roar—terrible, like a thunderbolt—at that sacrifice, just as the acclaim of Yudhiṣṭhira’s great gifts was spreading in all directions.”
वैशग्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse sets up a moral test: even when a king’s generosity is loudly praised, dharma requires scrutiny of inner worth and ethical completeness, not merely public acclaim. The mongoose’s thunder-like roar signals an impending evaluation of the sacrifice and the merit of giving.
During Yudhiṣṭhira’s Aśvamedha, after widespread praise of his gifts, a blue-eyed mongoose with one golden side arrives and emits a fearsome roar like a thunderbolt—an ominous interruption that introduces the famous mongoose episode.