Shloka 34
Jarāsandha as Obstacle to the Rājasūya — Kṛṣṇa’s Strategic Genealogical Brief
Sabhā Parva, Adhyāya 13
भूयो विममृशे पार्थों लोकानां हितकाम्यया । सामर्थ्ययोगं सम्प्रेक्ष्य देशकालौ व्ययागमौ,तदनन्तर मनको वशमें रखनेवाले महाबुद्धिमान् राजा युधिष्लिरने सम्पूर्ण लोकोंके हितकी इच्छासे पुनः: इस विषयपर मन-ही-मन विचार किया--'जो बुद्धिमान् अपनी शक्ति और साधनोंको देखकर तथा देश, काल, आय और व्ययको बुद्धिके द्वारा भलीभाँति समझ करके कार्य आरम्भ करता है, वह कष्टमें नहीं पड़ता। केवल अपने ही निश्चयसे यज्ञका आरम्भ नहीं किया जाता।” ऐसा समझकर यत्नपूर्वक कार्यभार वहन करनेवाले युधिष्छिरने उस कार्यके विषयमें पूर्ण निश्चय करनेके लिये जनार्दन भगवान् श्रीकृष्णको ही सब लोगोंसे उत्तम माना और वे मन-ही-मन उन अप्रमेय महाबाहु श्रीहरिकी शरणमें गये, जो अजन्मा होते हुए भी धर्म एवं साधु पुरुषोंकी रक्षा आदिकी इच्छासे मनुष्यलोकमें अवतीर्ण हुए थे
vaiśampāyana uvāca | bhūyo vimamṛśe pārtho lokānāṃ hitakāmyayā | sāmarthyayogaṃ samprekṣya deśakālau vyayāgamau | tad-anantaraṃ manako vaśaṃ meṃ rakhanevāle mahābuddhimān rājā yudhiṣṭhir ne sampūrṇa lokõ ke hit kī icchā se punaḥ as viṣay par man-hī-man vicār kiyā— “jo buddhimān apnī śakti aur sādhanõ ko dekhkar tathā deśa, kāla, āya aur vyay ko buddhī ke dvārā bhalībhāँti samajh kar kārya ārambh kartā hai, vah kaṣṭ meṃ nahīṃ paṛtā. keval apne hī niścay se yajña kā ārambh nahīṃ kiyā jātā.” aisa samajhkar yatnapūrvak kāryabhār vahan karanevāle yudhiṣṭhir ne us kāry ke viṣay meṃ pūrṇa niścay karane ke liye janārdan bhagavān śrīkṛṣṇa ko hī sab logõ se uttam mānā aur ve man-hī-man un aprameya mahābāhu śrīharī kī śaraṇ meṃ gaye, jo ajanmā hote hue bhī dharma evaṃ sādhu-puruṣõ kī rakṣā ādi kī icchā se manuṣyalok meṃ avatīrṇa hue the.
Vaiśampāyana said: Again the son of Pṛthā reflected, desiring the welfare of all people. Considering the proper alignment of resources and capability, and carefully weighing place and time, income and expenditure, the wise king Yudhiṣṭhira thought within himself: “One who is prudent—after assessing his strength and means, and after rightly understanding by reason the factors of place, time, revenue, and cost—does not fall into distress. A sacrifice should not be begun merely on the basis of one’s private resolve.” Having thus understood, Yudhiṣṭhira, who bore the burden of duty with deliberate effort, regarded Janārdana, Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa, as the best of all for arriving at a firm decision in that undertaking; and in his heart he sought refuge in that immeasurable, mighty-armed Śrī Hari, who, though unborn, had descended into the human world out of the will to protect dharma and the righteous.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Major undertakings—especially public, dharmic acts like a yajña—should be initiated only after sober assessment of capability and means, and after weighing context (place and time) and practical constraints (income and expenditure). Ethical intention (lokahita) must be joined to prudent planning and wise counsel, not mere personal impulse.
Yudhiṣṭhira reflects again on how to proceed with an important ritual undertaking. Recognizing that a yajña cannot be started solely by his own determination, he seeks a firm decision by turning inwardly to Kṛṣṇa (Janārdana/Śrī Hari) as the सर्वोत्तम guide—remembering him as the divine protector of dharma who has descended among humans.