Shloka 296
अश्रमवासिनां विषादः — Lament in Hastināpura after the Elders’ Forest Withdrawal
परित्यज्य गता: शूरा: प्रेतराजनिवेशनम् । वे सब शूरवीर भूपाल अपने पिताओं, पत्नियों, प्राणों और मनको प्रिय लगनेवाले भोगोंका परित्याग करके यमलोकको चले गये
parityajya gatāḥ śūrāḥ pretarājaniveśanam |
Vaiśampāyana dijo: «Habiendo renunciado a todo cuanto los ataba a la vida mundana, los héroes partieron hacia la morada del Señor de los difuntos, Yama. Es decir: aquellos reyes guerreros, abandonando el apego a los padres, a las esposas, a la propia vida y a los placeres queridos por la mente, marcharon al reino de Yama».
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores impermanence and the ethical necessity of detachment: even the brave and powerful must relinquish attachments—relationships, pleasures, and life itself—and face the ordained passage to Yama’s domain, reminding the listener to live with dharma rather than clinging.
Vaiśampāyana narrates that the heroic men (warrior-kings) depart for Pretarāja’s abode—Yama’s realm—signifying their death and transition beyond the human world after abandoning worldly ties and enjoyments.