Shloka 52
Vyāsa’s Counsel to Yudhiṣṭhira: Pratismṛti-vidyā, Arjuna’s Aśtra-Quest, and the Move to Kāmyaka
प्रत्युवाच महेन्द्रस्तं प्रीतात्मा प्रहसन्निव । इह प्राप्तस्य कि कार्यमस्त्रैस्तव धनंजय,तब महेन्द्रने प्रसन्नचित्त हो हँसते हुए-से कहा--“धनंजय! जब तुम यहाँतक आ पहुँचे, तब तुम्हें अस्त्रोंको लेकर क्या करना है? अब इच्छानुसार उत्तम लोक माँग लो; क्योंकि तुम्हें उत्तम गति प्राप्त हुई है।। यह सुनकर धनंजयने पुनः देवराजसे कहा--देवेश्वर! मैं अपने भाइयोंको वनमें छोड़कर (शत्रुओंसे) वैरका बदला लिये बिना लोभ अथवा कामनाके वशीभूत हो न तो देवत्व चाहता हूँ, न सुख और न सम्पूर्ण देवताओंका एऐश्वर्य प्राप्त कर लेनेकी ही मेरी इच्छा है। यदि मैंने वैसा किया तो सदाके लिये सम्पूर्ण लोकोंमें मुझे महान् अपयश प्राप्त होगा”
vaiśampāyana uvāca | pratyuvāca mahendras taṃ prītātmā prahasan iva | iha prāptasya kiṃ kāryam astrais tava dhanaṃjaya |
Vaiśampāyana said: Indra, pleased at heart, replied with a smile, “Dhanaṃjaya, now that you have come here, what need have you of weapons? Ask instead, as you wish, for an excellent world, for you have attained the highest course.” Hearing this, Dhanaṃjaya answered the lord of the gods again: “O divine ruler, having left my brothers in the forest, I do not desire godhood, pleasure, or even the sovereignty of all the gods, if it means yielding to greed or desire without first avenging the enmity of our foes. If I were to act so, I would incur great and lasting disgrace in all the worlds.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage contrasts heavenly reward with dharmic obligation: a kṣatriya should not abandon duty for pleasure, power, or even divine status. True excellence lies in steadfastness, resisting greed and desire, and protecting honor by fulfilling rightful responsibilities.
Indra, pleased, tells Arjuna that having reached the divine realm he need not seek weapons and may instead ask for a higher world. Arjuna responds that he cannot accept such rewards while his brothers remain in forest-exile and their enemies remain unpunished; choosing comfort now would bring lasting disgrace.