Shloka 18
मातापितृपूजन-प्रधानधर्मः (Primacy of Filial Service) — Mārkaṇḍeya’s Account of the Vyādha’s Instruction
युधिष्ठिर! जहाँ महान् असुर *धुन्धु” रहता था, वहीं आकाशमें देवताओंके विमान आदि दिखायी देने लगे ।। कुवलाश्चस्य धुन्धोश्व युद्धकौतूहलान्विता: । देवगन्धर्वसहिता: समवैक्षन् महर्षय:,कुवलाश्व और धुन्धुका युद्ध देखनेके लिये उत्सुक हो देवताओं और गन्धर्वोंके साथ महर्षि भी आकर डट गये और वहाँकी सारी बातोंपर दृष्टिपात करने लगे
Yudhiṣṭhira! yatra mahān asuro dhundhur vasati sma, tatraivākāśe devatānāṃ vimānāni dṛśyante sma. Kuvalāśvaś ca Dhundhoś ca yuddha-kautūhalānvitāḥ; deva-gandharva-sahitāḥ samavaikṣan maharṣayaḥ.
Mārkaṇḍeya said: “O Yudhiṣṭhira, at the very spot where the mighty demon Dhundhu dwelt, celestial chariots of the gods became visible in the sky. Eager to witness the combat between King Kuvalāśva and Dhundhu, great seers arrived there together with the gods and Gandharvas, and they stood watching closely all that was to unfold.”
मार्कण्डेय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames righteous struggle as an event under moral and cosmic scrutiny: when a king confronts a destructive force, the outcome matters not only politically but ethically, drawing the attention of sages and divine beings who symbolize higher judgment and the maintenance of order (dharma).
Mārkaṇḍeya tells Yudhiṣṭhira that at Dhundhu’s dwelling-place, celestial vimānas appear in the sky. Gods, Gandharvas, and great sages gather, eager to watch the impending battle between King Kuvalāśva and the asura Dhundhu, and they observe the scene closely.