Shloka 21
Parīkṣit-janma-saṃkaṭa and Kuntī’s petition to Vāsudeva (परिक्षिज्जन्मसंकटं कुन्त्याः प्रार्थना च)
एतेष्वादाय तद् द्रव्यं पुनरभ्यर्च्य पाण्डव: । महादेवं प्रति ययौ पुरं नागाह्दयं प्रति
eteṣv ādāya tad dravyaṃ punar abhyarcya pāṇḍavaḥ | mahādevaṃ prati yayau puraṃ nāgāhṛdayaṃ prati, dvaipāyanābhyanujñātaḥ puraskṛtya purohitam ||
Habiendo cargado aquella riqueza en esos vehículos, el Pāṇḍava (Yudhiṣṭhira) volvió a rendir culto y reverencia. Con el permiso de Dvaipāyana (Vyāsa), y poniendo al frente a su sacerdote familiar, partió hacia la ciudad de Nāgāhṛdaya, avanzando con devoción hacia Mahādeva. El pasaje subraya el deber ético del rey: santificar los grandes actos de dádiva y de gobierno mediante humildad, corrección ritual y deferencia a la autoridad espiritual.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even after immense royal acts involving wealth and power, a righteous king re-centers himself through worship, humility, and obedience to spiritual counsel—showing that dharma requires both material responsibility and reverence for higher moral authority.
Yudhiṣṭhira has the wealth loaded onto the conveyances, performs worship again, receives Vyāsa’s permission, places the royal priest in front, and then departs toward the city called Nāgāhṛdaya, proceeding in devotion to Mahādeva.