Shloka 81
इति श्रीमहाभारते उद्योगपर्वणि भगवद्यानपर्वणि सहदेवसात्यकिवाक्ये एकाशीतितमो<ध्याय:
iti śrīmahābhārate udyogaparvaṇi bhagavadyānaparvaṇi sahadevasātyakivākye ekāśītitamo 'dhyāyaḥ
Thus, in the Śrī Mahābhārata, within the Udyoga Parva, in the section concerning the Lord’s embassy, in the episode of the words spoken by Sahadeva and Sātyaki, ends the eighty-first chapter. This closing colophon frames the narrative as part of the diplomatic effort to avert war, foregrounding counsel and speech grounded in dharma before the inevitable turn to arms.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The colophon emphasizes that this portion of the epic is structured around dharmic counsel and diplomatic speech—ethical deliberation and attempts at reconciliation are presented as necessary before war, underscoring responsibility in decision-making and the moral weight of words.
This is the chapter-ending colophon: Vaiśaṃpāyana marks the close of the eighty-first chapter within the Udyoga Parva’s Bhagavad-yāna section, identifying the episode as centered on the statements of Sahadeva and Sātyaki in the context of the Lord’s embassy.