Shloka 17
सभा-पर्व, अध्याय ६१ — द्रौपदी-प्रश्नः, सभाधर्मः, सत्यवचन-नियमः
सर्वे च पुरभेत्तारो नवमेघनिभा गजा: । एतद् राजन् मम धन तेन दीव्याम्यहं त्वया,उनकी कान्ति नूतन मेघोंकी घटाके समान है। वे सब-के-सब बड़े-बड़े नगरोंको भी नाश कर देनेकी शक्ति रखते हैं। राजन! यह मेरा धन है, जिसे दाँवपर लगाकर मैं तुम्हारे साथ खेलता हूँ
sarve ca purabhettāro navameghanibhā gajāḥ | etad rājan mama dhana tena dīvyāmy ahaṃ tvayā ||
Yudhiṣṭhira said: “All these elephants are city-breakers, their radiance like a mass of fresh rain-clouds. O King, this is my wealth; staking it, I gamble with you.”
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how immense royal resources and power can be misused when a ruler yields to vice (gambling). Wealth that should serve protection and dharma becomes an instrument of self-ruin when staked under delusion and social manipulation.
In the dice-hall episode, Yudhiṣṭhira continues wagering his possessions. Here he declares that he is staking formidable, city-destroying elephants—describing their cloud-like splendor—while addressing the opposing king in the game.