Shloka 31
अग्निस्तुति, इन्द्रदर्शन, नहुष-भयवर्णन
Agni-hymn, discovery of Indra, and the Nahuṣa threat
त्वं चेद् राजानं नहुषं पराजये- स्ततो वयं भागमर्हाम शक्र । इन्द्रोडब्रवीद् भवतु भवानपां पति- यम: कुबेरश्व मयाभिषेकम्
tvaṃ ced rājānaṃ nahuṣaṃ parājayes tato vayaṃ bhāgam arhāma śakra | indro 'bravīd bhavatu bhavān apāṃ patiḥ yamaḥ kuberaś ca mayābhiṣekam ||
Śalya said: “If you can defeat King Nahuṣa, then we too shall deserve a share, O Śakra.” Indra replied, “So be it: let you become the lord of the waters; and let Yama and Kubera also receive consecration at my hands.”
शल्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
Honor and office are portrayed as earned through demonstrable service to order (dharma): one becomes worthy of a ‘share’ only after accomplishing a difficult task that protects the larger community.
Śalya recounts a conditional promise: if Nahuṣa is overcome, the claimants become entitled to a portion of honor. Indra assents and declares installations—appointing one as lord of waters and granting consecration to Yama and Kubera—signaling the distribution of cosmic roles after the crisis.