Shloka 476

उद्योगपर्व — अध्याय ९३: कृष्णस्य धृतराष्ट्रोपदेशः

Kṛṣṇa’s Counsel to Dhṛtarāṣṭra in the Assembly

Devanagari script

विविंशतिर्ददौ पीठं काज्चनं कृतवर्मणे । दुःशासनने सात्यकिको उत्तम आसन दिया एवं विविंशतिने कृतवर्माको स्वर्णमय आसन प्रदान किया

Transliteration

Viviṁśatir dadau pīṭhaṁ kāñcanaṁ Kṛtavarmaṇe | Duḥśāsanena Sātyakiko uttamam āsanaṁ dīyam |

Translation

Vaiśampāyana said: Viviṁśati presented a golden seat to Kṛtavarman. Duḥśāsana, in turn, offered Sātyaki an excellent seat.

Word by Word

• vivimśatiḥ: Vivimśati (a person’s name)
• vivimśatiḥ: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: vivimśati (pratipadika)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• dadau: gave
• Type: Verb
• Root: dā (dhātu)
• Form: Perfect (Liṭ), 3rd, Singular

• pīṭham: seat, stool, chair
• pīṭham: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: pīṭha (pratipadika)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• kāñcanam: golden
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kāñcana (pratipadika)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• kṛtavarmaṇe: to Kṛtavarman
• kṛtavarmaṇe: Sampradana
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṛtavarman (pratipadika)
• Form: Masculine, Dative, Singular

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• Viviṁśati
• Kṛtavarman
• Duḥśāsana
• Sātyaki
• kāñcana-pīṭha (golden seat)
• uttama-āsana (excellent seat)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the kṣatriya code of honoring guests and allies through formal hospitality—especially the offering of distinguished seats. Such gestures are ethically framed as respect and propriety, yet they also function as political signals of allegiance in a tense pre-war setting.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Udyoga Parva’s courtly proceedings, Viviṁśati honors Kṛtavarman with a golden seat, and Duḥśāsana similarly offers Sātyaki an excellent seat. The narration records the distribution of honors among prominent warriors, reflecting the alignment and status of key figures as war approaches.