Mahabharata 3.37.24 — Vana Parva, Adhyaya 37, Shloka 24
Vyāsa’s Counsel to Yudhiṣṭhira: Pratismṛti-vidyā, Arjuna’s Aśtra-Quest, and the Move to Kāmyaka
कृष्णोवाच यत् ते कुन्ती महाबाहो जातस्यैच्छद् धनंजय
kṛṣṇo vāca yat te kuntī mahābāho jātasyaicchad dhanaṃjaya
Kṛṣṇa said: “O mighty-armed Dhanañjaya, what Kuntī desired for you when you were born…”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The line frames a moral-narrative point: a mother’s intention and blessing at a child’s birth is invoked as an ethical reference for the hero’s later conduct—linking personal destiny with dharma and responsibility.
Vaiśampāyana reports Kṛṣṇa beginning a statement addressed to Arjuna (Dhanañjaya), introducing what Kuntī wished for him at his birth—setting up an explanation or reminder about Arjuna’s qualities, purpose, or duty.
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