Shloka 15
Bhīṣma’s Admonition; Duryodhana’s Rājasūya Aspiration and the Proposal of a Vaiṣṇava-satra
ऋद्धया परमया युक्तो महेन्द्र इव वज्रभृत् । यदृच्छया च तत्रस्थो धर्मपुत्रो युधिष्ठिर:,उसी सरोवरके तटपर वज्रधारी इन्द्रके समान उत्तम ऐश्वर्यसे सम्पन्न बुद्धिमान धर्मपुत्र राजा युधिष्ठिर अपनी धर्मपत्नी महारानी द्रौपदीके साथ साद्यस्क (एक दिनमें पूर्ण होनेवाले) राजर्षियज्ञका अनुष्ठान कर रहे थे। कुरुश्रेष्ठ जनमेजय! उस यज्ञमें उनके साथ बहुत-से वनवासी दिद्दान् ब्राह्मण भी थे। राजा वनमें सुलभ होनेवाली सामग्रीद्वारा दिव्य विधिसे यज्ञ कर रहे थे। वे उसी सरोवरके आस-पास कुटी बनाकर रहते थे
ṛddhayā paramayā yukto mahendra iva vajrabhṛt | yadṛcchayā ca tatrastho dharmaputro yudhiṣṭhiraḥ ||
Vaiśampāyana said: Endowed with supreme prosperity, like great Indra the wielder of the thunderbolt, Dharmaputra Yudhiṣṭhira happened to be staying there. With clear judgment and royal dignity even in exile, he was performing a one-day royal seers’ sacrifice (sādyaska) together with his lawful queen Draupadī, using whatever forest materials could be obtained and following the proper sacred procedure. Many learned forest-dwelling brāhmaṇas were present, and the king lived nearby in huts built around the lake’s shore.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even in hardship and exile, righteous leadership is shown by maintaining dharma—upholding sacred duties, supporting learned guests, and performing actions with purity of means rather than dependence on luxury. Yudhiṣṭhira’s prosperity is portrayed as ethical and inner (ṛddhi grounded in dharma), not merely material.
Yudhiṣṭhira is staying by a lake in the forest and conducting a one-day royal-seer sacrifice with Draupadī. Many learned forest-dwelling brāhmaṇas attend, and the rite is performed using readily available forest materials according to proper ritual procedure, while the Pāṇḍavas live in huts near the lake.