Shloka 18
मत्पूर्वा रुक्मिणीं कृष्ण संसत्सु परिकीर्तयन् | विशेषत: पार्थिवेषु व्रीडां न कुरुषे कथम्,“कृष्ण! तुम इस भरी सभामें, विशेषतः सभी राजाओंके सामने रुक्मिणीको मेरी पहलेकी मनोनीत पत्नी बताते हुए लज्जाका अनुभव कैसे नहीं करते?
matpūrvā rukmiṇīṃ kṛṣṇa saṃsatsu parikīrtayan | viśeṣataḥ pārthiveṣu vrīḍāṃ na kuruṣe katham ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “O Kṛṣṇa, as you proclaim in this full assembly—especially before the gathered kings—that Rukmiṇī was first chosen by me, how is it that you feel no shame?”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical weight of public speech in a royal assembly: proclaiming a claim over a woman (and doing so before kings) is framed as a matter of honor, propriety, and social restraint (vrīḍā).
In the court setting, a speaker challenges Kṛṣṇa for publicly declaring that Rukmiṇī had been previously designated as the speaker’s intended wife, questioning how Kṛṣṇa can say this openly—especially before other kings—without embarrassment.