Shloka 49
Kubera’s Fivefold Nīti and Protection of the Pāṇḍavas (वैश्रवणोपदेशः)
फलैरमृतकल्पैस्तानाचितान् स्वादुभिस्तरून् | तथैव चम्पकाशोकान् केतकान् बकुलांस्तथा
phalair amṛtakalpais tān ācitān svādubhis tarūn | tathaiva campakāśokān ketakān bakulāṁs tathā
Vaiśampāyana said: The trees there were laden with sweet fruits, as though they were nectar itself; and likewise there were campaka and aśoka trees, ketaka plants, and bakula trees—an abundance of fragrant, auspicious growth that deepened the sense of a blessed, serene forest.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse primarily serves descriptive and ethical-narrative framing: it presents the forest as abundant and auspicious, suggesting that even in exile or hardship, the world can offer sustaining beauty and nourishment—encouraging steadiness and receptivity rather than despair.
Vaiśampāyana describes a forest region rich with sweet, nectar-like fruits and fragrant trees (campaka, aśoka, ketaka, bakula), building the atmosphere of a serene, fertile woodland setting within the Vana Parva narrative.