Shloka 76
Adhyāya 32: Rājasūya-Dīkṣā and Appointment of Court Offices (राजसूयदीक्षा तथा अधिकारविनियोगः)
तथा माध्यमिकांश्चैव वाटधानान् द्विजानथ । तत्पश्चात् दशार्णदेशपर विजय प्राप्त करके पाण्डुनन्दन नकुलने शिबि
tathā mādhyamikāṁś caiva vāṭadhānān dvijān atha | tatpaścāt daśārṇadeśapara vijayaṁ prāpya pāṇḍunandana nakulaḥ śibi-trigarta-ambaṣṭha-mālava-pañcakarpata-mādhyamika-deśān prasthitaḥ, tān sarvān jitvā vāṭadhānadeśīyān kṣatriyān api parājigāya |
Vaiśampāyana said: “Likewise, he subdued the Mādhymikas and then the Vāṭadhānas. Thereafter, having secured victory in the land of Daśārṇa, Nakula—the son of Pāṇḍu—set out against the regions of the Śibis, Trigartas, Ambaṣṭhas, Mālavas, Pañcakarpatas, and Mādhymikas; conquering them all, he also defeated the Kṣatriyas of the Vāṭadhāna country.” The passage portrays the disciplined expansion of Yudhiṣṭhira’s imperial rite through Nakula’s campaign, where political submission is sought as part of a larger, ordered sovereignty rather than mere plunder.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse supports the Mahābhārata’s theme that royal power should be exercised within an ordered framework—here, Nakula’s conquests serve the larger purpose of establishing Yudhiṣṭhira’s legitimate sovereignty (connected with the Rājasūya), emphasizing disciplined statecraft and Kṣatriya responsibility rather than aimless violence.
Vaiśampāyana recounts Nakula’s campaign: after winning in Daśārṇa, he marches through multiple regions—Śibi, Trigarta, Ambaṣṭha, Mālava, Pañcakarpata, and Mādhymika—and defeats them, including the Kṣatriyas of Vāṭadhāna, bringing these territories under submission.