Shloka 3
Virāṭa-parva Adhyāya 23: Report of the Slain Sūtaputras, Royal Orders, and Sairandhrī’s Return
पोथितं भीमसेनेन तमिन्द्रेणेव दानवम् । संस्कारयितुमिच्छन्तो बहिनेंतुं प्रचक्रमु:
Vaiśampāyana uvāca: Pothitaṃ Bhīmasenena tam Indreṇeva dānavam | Saṃskārayitum icchanto bahir netuṃ pracakramuḥ ||
Vaiśampāyana said: Just as Indra struck down the demon, so had Bhīmasena crushed that Kīcaka. Wishing to perform his funeral rites, Kīcaka’s kinsmen began making preparations to carry his body outside to the cremation ground.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights dharma at two levels: the removal of an oppressive wrongdoer is portrayed as restoring order (likened to Indra’s slaying of a demon), yet society still maintains the duty of saṃskāra—performing last rites for the dead—showing that ritual and social obligations continue even amid conflict.
After Kīcaka has been slain by Bhīmasena, his relatives intend to conduct his cremation rites and begin arranging to carry his body outside to the cremation ground.