Shloka 26
उत्तङ्कोपाख्यानप्रारम्भः — Uttanka’s Tapas, Viṣṇu-stuti, and the Dhundhumāra Prophecy
Opening
विजित्य पृथिवीं सर्वा मोदमान: सुखी भव । एष भूतो भविष्यश्च धर्मस्ते समुदीरित:,सारी पृथ्वीको जीतकर सदा सानन्द और सुखी रहो। तात युधिष्ठिर! मैंने तुम्हें जो यह धर्म बताया है, इसका पालन भूतकालमें भी हुआ है और भविष्यकालमें भी इसका पालन होना चाहिए। भूत और भविष्यकी ऐसी कोई बात नहीं है, जो तुम्हें ज्ञात न हो; अतः: इस समय जो यह क्लेश तुम्हें प्राप्त हुआ है, इसके लिये हृदयमें कोई विचार न करो
vijitya pṛthivīṃ sarvāṃ modamānaḥ sukhī bhava | eṣa bhūto bhaviṣyaś ca dharmas te samudīritaḥ ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “Having conquered the whole earth, remain ever joyful and at ease. This dharma has been declared to you—one that has been followed in the past and is to be followed in the future.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Dharma is presented as a timeless standard—validated by past practice and binding for the future. One should act and endure according to that enduring dharma, maintaining inner steadiness and joy rather than being overwhelmed by present distress.
Vaiśampāyana, in the course of recounting the tradition, delivers an instructive assurance directed toward Yudhiṣṭhira: he is exhorted to uphold dharma and remain composed, with the promise that such conduct is the established way across time.