Shloka 11
Śānti-parva Adhyāya 44 — Post-War Reassignment of Residences and Restorative Consolation (शान्तिपर्व अध्याय ४४)
नकुलाय वरार्हाय कर्शिताय महावने । ददौ प्रीतो महाराज धर्मपुत्रो युधिष्ठिर:
nakulāya varārhāya karśitāya mahāvane | dadau prīto mahārāja dharmaputro yudhiṣṭhiraḥ ||
Vaiśampāyana said: O King, Dharma’s son Yudhiṣṭhira, deeply pleased, bestowed upon Nakula—worn down by hardships in the great forest and worthy of a boon—the splendid residence that had belonged to Durmarṣaṇa. The gift reflects Yudhiṣṭhira’s ethic of honoring endurance and merit with rightful generosity.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
A ruler guided by dharma recognizes hardship borne with integrity and responds with appropriate generosity; rightful reward is framed as an ethical duty, not mere favor.
Vaiśampāyana narrates that Yudhiṣṭhira, pleased, grants Nakula—who suffered in the great forest—a splendid residence associated with Durmarṣaṇa, marking an act of honor and recompense.