Shloka 11
अध्याय ८ — शल्यस्य सत्कारः, वरदानं, पाण्डवसमागमश्च (Śalya’s Reception, the Boon, and Meeting the Pāṇḍavas)
स ता: सभा: समासाद्य पूज्यमानो यथामर: । दुर्योधनस्य सचिवैददेशे देशो समन्ततः,सब ओर विभिन्न स्थानोंमें बने हुए उन सभाभवनोंमें पहुँचकर राजा शल्य दुर्योधनके मन्त्रियोंद्वारा देवताओं-की भाँति पूजित होते थे
sa tāḥ sabhāḥ samāsādya pūjyamāno yathāmaraḥ | duryodhanasya sacivair dadeśe deśaḥ samantataḥ ||
Vaiśampāyana said: Having reached those assembly-halls, King Śalya was honoured like a god; and, through Duryodhana’s ministers, quarters and accommodations were assigned to him on every side. The scene underscores how political hospitality and ceremonial reverence are deployed to secure allegiance on the eve of conflict.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how honour and hospitality function as instruments of statecraft: public reverence and careful accommodation can bind powerful guests into political obligation, raising ethical questions about loyalty formed through ceremony rather than dharmic discernment.
Śalya arrives at various assembly-halls and is received with divine-like honours; Duryodhana’s ministers arrange places and quarters for him all around, signalling a strategic welcome meant to secure Śalya’s support.