Shloka 53
Omens and Consolation after Loss; Reaffirmation of the Saindhava Punishment Vow (उत्पात-दर्शनम्, आश्वासन-वाक्यानि, प्रतिज्ञा-स्थैर्यम्)
इस प्रकार श्रीमह्ाभारत द्रोणपर्वके अन्तर्गत अभिमन्युवधपर्वमें मृत्युवर्णणविषयक तिरपनवाँ अध्याय पूरा हुआ,तथोक्तो नारदस्तेन राज्ञा ऋषिवरोत्तम: | जगाम नन्दनं शीघ्र देवर्षिरमितात्मवान् राजा अकम्पनके इस प्रकार कहनेपर ऋषियोंमें श्रेष्ठठटम अमितात्मा देवर्षि नारद शीघ्र ही नन्न्दन वनको चले गये
tathokto nāradastena rājñā ṛṣivarottamaḥ | jagāma nandanaṃ śīghraṃ devarṣiramitātmavān ||
Thus addressed by the king, the divine seer Nārada—foremost among sages and of immeasurable spirit—departed at once for Nandana, the celestial grove. The scene closes with the completion of the chapter’s account of death, underscoring the ethical gravity of war: even amid royal power and battlefield fate, the sage’s role is to speak truth and then withdraw, leaving the ruler to act with responsibility under dharma.
नारद उवाच