Shloka 50
स तान् प्रसादयामास शापस्यान्तो भवेदिति | तैश्षाप्युक्त: क्षिपन् धर्म शापस्यान्तमवाप्स्यसि,इस शापका अन्त होनेके उद्देश्यसे उन्होंने पितरोंको प्रसन्न किया। तब पितरोंने कहा --तुम धर्मराज युधिष्ठिरपर आक्षेप करके इस शापसे छुटकारा पा जाओगे”
sa tān prasādayāmāsa śāpasya anto bhaved iti | taiḥ śāpyuktaḥ kṣipan dharmaṃ śāpasya antam avāpsyasi ||
Vaiśaṃpāyana said: Seeking the end of the curse, he propitiated the Pitṛs (ancestral spirits). They, having been appeased, instructed him: “By casting blame upon Dharma—Yudhiṣṭhira, the king of righteousness—you will attain release from this curse.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the complex ethics of speech and intention: even when a goal is relief from suffering (ending a curse), the prescribed means—casting blame on a righteous figure—creates a moral tension, reminding readers that dharma can be tested by expedient remedies and that ritual/spiritual economies may demand difficult choices.
A person afflicted by a curse seeks its cessation by pleasing the Pitṛs. Once satisfied, the Pitṛs advise that the curse will end if he directs an accusation or blame toward Dharma—identified here with Dharmarāja Yudhiṣṭhira.