Shloka 13
मृगस्वप्नदर्शनम्
The Deer’s Dream-Appeal and the Move to Kāmyaka
वरप्रदानं राज्यं च पुत्रजन्म च पाण्डवा: | शत्रोश्व मोक्षणं क्लेशात् त्रीणि चैक च तत्समम्,'पाण्डवो! वरदान, राज्यप्रदान, पुत्रकी प्राप्ति कराना तथा शत्रुका संकटसे उद्धार करना--इन चार वस्तुओंमेंसे प्रारम्भके तीन और अन्तका एक समान हैं
Vaiśampāyana uvāca: varapradānaṃ rājyaṃ ca putrajanma ca pāṇḍavāḥ | śatroś ca mokṣaṇaṃ kleśāt trīṇi caikaṃ ca tatsamam ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “O Pāṇḍavas, the granting of a boon, the bestowal of a kingdom, and the securing of a son’s birth—these three; and also the rescuing of one from an enemy’s distress—these are equivalent in merit.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse equates different forms of beneficence—granting boons, conferring sovereignty, enabling progeny, and rescuing someone from an enemy’s distress—highlighting that compassionate protection and life-supporting gifts can carry comparable ethical merit.
Vaiśampāyana addresses the Pāṇḍavas and states a moral comparison: several great acts of giving and aid are placed on the same scale of worth, emphasizing the value of timely rescue from danger alongside royal and familial blessings.