Mahabharata — Vana Parva, Shloka 101
युधिष्ठिरस्य अर्जुनप्रेषण-युक्तिवर्णनम् | Yudhiṣṭhira’s Rationale for Sending Arjuna and Request to Dhaumya
मतड़स्याश्रमस्तत्र महर्षेर्भावितात्मन: । त॑ प्रविश्याश्रमं श्रीमच्छूमशोकविनाशनम्
Maṭadasyāśramas tatra maharṣer bhāvitātmanaḥ | taṁ praviśyāśramaṁ śrīmac chūmaśokavināśanam ||
There stood the hermitage of Maṭada, a great seer whose spirit was disciplined and purified. Entering that venerable āśrama—radiant with sanctity—one found a place that dispelled grief and weariness, granting solace through the presence of a realized sage and the peace of ascetic life.
घुलस्त्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical-spiritual ideal that inner cultivation (bhāvitātman) and a life grounded in tapas create an environment that naturally calms suffering. A sage’s disciplined presence and a sanctified space can become a refuge where grief is reduced and clarity returns.
The speaker points out the location of the great seer Maṭada’s hermitage and describes it as auspicious and grief-dispelling. The narrative moment is a transition into the āśrama setting, preparing for counsel, hospitality, or a restorative encounter typical of forest-episode sequences in the Vana Parva.