Shloka 3
Puṣkara-Tīrtha-Māhātmya and the Phala of Pilgrimage
Nārada–Yudhiṣṭhira; Pulastya–Bhīṣma Transmission
तेनेन्द्रसमवीर्येण संग्रामेष्वनिवर्तिना । विनाभूता वने वीरा: कथमासन् पितामहा:,वे संग्रामसे कभी पीछे न हटनेवाले और इन्द्रके समान पराक्रमी थे। उनके बिना मेरे अन्य वीर पितामह वनमें कैसे रहते थे?
tenendra-samavīryeṇa saṅgrāmeṣv anivartinā | vinā bhūtā vane vīrāḥ katham āsan pitāmahāḥ ||
Janamejaya asked: “Those heroes were equal in prowess to Indra and never turned back in battle. Deprived of them, how did my grandsires manage to live in the forest?”
जनमेजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the classical kshatriya ideal of steadfastness in battle (anivartin) and raises an ethical-narrative contrast: even the mightiest warriors must sometimes endure hardship and restraint in the forest, showing that dharma includes both valor in war and patience in adversity.
Janamejaya, listening to the ancestral history, asks how his forefathers could sustain themselves during forest life when they were separated from a key, Indra-like, never-retreating hero—implying concern about their security, morale, and survival without such martial support.