Shloka 35
Rājasūyābhiṣeka-darśana: Duryodhana’s Observation of the Consecration
वैश्या इव महीपाला द्विजातिपरिवेषका: । न सा श्रीर्देवराजस्य यमस्य वरुणस्य च । गुहाकाधिपतेर्वापि या श्री राजन् युधिष्ठिरे,राजालोग वैश्योंकी भाँति ब्राह्मणोंको भोजन परोसते थे। राजा युधिष्ठिरके पास जो लक्ष्मी है, वह देवराज इन्द्र, यम, वरुण अथवा यक्षराज कुबेरके पास भी नहीं होगी
vaiśyā iva mahīpālā dvijāti-pariveṣakāḥ | na sā śrīr devarājasya yamasya varuṇasya ca | guhākādhipater vāpi yā śrī rājan yudhiṣṭhire ||
Duryodhana said: “Those kings, as though they were mere vaiśyas, are serving food to the twice-born. O King, the splendor and prosperity that rest with Yudhiṣṭhira are not found even with Indra, nor with Yama, nor with Varuṇa, nor even with Kubera, lord of the Yakṣas.”
दुर्योधन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how outward prosperity and honor can provoke envy and distorted judgment: Duryodhana interprets acts of dharmic hospitality toward brāhmaṇas as humiliating for kings, revealing how pride can invert ethical values.
In the context of Yudhiṣṭhira’s grand royal rite and courtly magnificence, Duryodhana observes kings serving the twice-born and, stung by comparison, declares that Yudhiṣṭhira’s fortune surpasses even that of major deities—an admission that intensifies his resentment.