Shloka 25
Adhyaya 11 — Draupadī’s Grief, Demand for Justice, and Bhīma’s Departure
“यह बात सम्पूर्ण जगतमें प्रसिद्ध है कि वारणावतनगरमें जब कुन्तीके पुत्रोंपर भारी संकट पड़ा था, तब आप ही द्वीपके समान उनके रक्षक हुए थे ।। हिडिम्बदर्शने चैव तथा त्वमभवो गति: । तथा विराटनगरे कीचकेन भृशार्दिताम्
yaḥ bāta sampūrṇa-jagat-e prasiddhā asti yat Vāraṇāvata-nagare yadā Kuntī-putreṣu bhārī saṅkaṭaḥ apatat, tadā tvam eva dvīpa iva teṣāṃ rakṣakaḥ abhavaḥ. hiḍimba-darśane ca eva tathā tvam abhavo gatiḥ; tathā Virāṭa-nagare Kīcakena bhṛśa-arditām.
This is well known throughout the world: when Kuntī’s sons fell into a grave peril in the city of Vāraṇāvata, you alone became their protector—like an island for those drowning. Likewise, at the encounter with Hiḍimba you became their refuge; and so too in the city of Virāṭa, when they were cruelly harassed by Kīcaka.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical ideal of steadfast protection: in moments of extreme danger, a righteous ally becomes a ‘refuge’ for the vulnerable. It praises consistent guardianship across different trials, implying that true strength is measured by how one shields others in संकट (crisis).
Vaiśampāyana recalls earlier episodes where the Pāṇḍavas faced peril—at Vāraṇāvata, during the Hiḍimba encounter, and in Virāṭa’s city under Kīcaka’s oppression—and states that the addressed person repeatedly served as their protector and refuge.