Shloka 15
Kurukṣetra–Samantapañcaka Māhātmya: King Kuru’s Ploughing and Indra’s Boon (प्रजापतेरुत्तरवेदिः समन्तपञ्चकं)
ऋषि: प्राक् शुद्रवान्नाम समयं चेममत्रवीत् । समयेन तवाद्याहं पार्णिं स्प्रक्ष्यामि शोभने
ṛṣiḥ prāk śudravān nāma samayaṁ cemam atravīt | samayena tavādyāhaṁ pārṇiṁ sprakṣyāmi śobhane ||
Vaiśaṃpāyana said: “Formerly, a sage named Śudravān declared this very agreement here. By virtue of that pact, O fair one, today I shall touch your hand.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds the ethical force of a samaya (pledge/compact): actions—especially intimate or socially consequential ones like taking/touching a hand—are justified not by impulse but by a prior, publicly acknowledged commitment.
The speaker cites an earlier proclamation by the sage Śudravān establishing an agreement. Invoking that precedent, he states that, in accordance with the pact, he will now touch the woman’s hand—an act that often signals formal acceptance or a marriage-like claim in epic narrative contexts.