Shloka 37
Ajñātavāsa-saṅkalpaḥ — Yudhiṣṭhira’s Resolve and Dhaumya’s Exempla on Concealment
यम उवाच पिपासितस्येव भवेद् यथा पय- स्तथा त्वया वाक्यमिदं समीरितम् | विना पुन: सत्यवतो<स्य जीवितं वरं वृणीष्वेह शुभे यदिच्छसि,यमराज बोले--शुभे! जैसे प्यासे मनुष्यको प्राप्त हुआ जल आनन्ददायक होता है, उसी प्रकार तेरी कही हुई यह बात मुझे अत्यन्त सुख दे रही है। अतः तू सत्यवानके जीवनके सिवा और कोई वर, जिसे तू लेना चाहे, माँग ले
yama uvāca | pipāsitasyeva bhaved yathā payas tathā tvayā vākyam idaṃ samīritam | vinā punaḥ satyavato 'sya jīvitaṃ varaṃ vṛṇīṣveha śubhe yad icchasi ||
Yama said: “O auspicious lady, just as water delights one parched with thirst, so have your words spoken here given me profound satisfaction. Therefore, apart from Satyavān’s life, choose any other boon here—whatever you desire.”
यम उवाच
Educational Q&A
Words grounded in dharma and truth can move even the lord of death; ethical speech and steadfast righteousness earn divine favor, though certain cosmic limits (here, Satyavān’s life) are explicitly set.
Yama responds to the heroine’s dharmic reasoning with pleasure, comparing her words to water for a thirsty person, and invites her to choose any boon—while excluding the return of Satyavān’s life at this point.