Shloka 70
अर्जुनस्य अन्त्येष्टि, द्वारकाप्लावनम्, कलिप्रवेशः, कालोपदेशः
गृहीता दस्युभिर् यच् च भवता शोचिताः स्त्रियः तद् अप्य् अहं यथावृत्तं कथयामि तवार्जुन
gṛhītā dasyubhir yac ca bhavatā śocitāḥ striyaḥ tad apy ahaṃ yathāvṛttaṃ kathayāmi tavārjuna
And as for those women who were seized by bandits—over whom you grieved—of that too, O Arjuna, I shall recount to you exactly what occurred, just as it happened.
Narrator (within the Purāṇic frame: Sage Parāśara relating the history to Maitreya; within the embedded story: a narrator addressing Arjuna)
Speaker: Parasara
Topic: The exact account of the abduction of women by bandits and Arjuna’s grief
Teaching: Historical
Quality: compassionate
FAQs
It highlights how social disorder (banditry and abduction) becomes a test of kṣatriya duty, and sets up a factual narration of events to clarify responsibility and dharma.
This verse signals layered storytelling: the Purāṇa is framed as Parāśara teaching Maitreya, while specific episodes may include embedded speakers addressing figures like Arjuna.
Even in a seemingly secular episode, the Purāṇa’s worldview treats righteous order as sustained under Vishnu’s sovereignty, with dharma functioning as the instrument of cosmic stability.