Adhyāya 3: Indra’s Invitation and Yudhiṣṭhira’s Refusal to Abandon the Dog
Svargārohaṇa Test
स तं रथं समास्थाय राजा कुरुकुलोदवह: । ऊर्ध्वमाचक्रमे शीघ्रं तेजसा55वृत्य रोदसी,कुरुकुलतिलक राजा युधिष्ठिर उस रथमें बैठकर अपने तेजसे पृथ्वी और आकाशको व्याप्त करते हुए तीव्र गतिसे ऊपरकी ओर जाने लगे
sa taṁ rathaṁ samāsthāya rājā kurukulodvahaḥ | ūrdhvam ācakrame śīghraṁ tejasāvṛtya rodasī ||
Vaiśampāyana dijo: Al subir a aquel carro, el rey Yudhiṣṭhira—el más preclaro sostén de la estirpe Kuru—comenzó a ascender con rapidez. Por el resplandor de su propio mérito espiritual y su majestad regia, parecía abarcar tierra y cielo, señalando la culminación de una vida vivida en dharma y el tránsito del señorío mundano al último viaje más allá de él.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
The verse underscores the fruition of dharma: a ruler who has upheld righteousness and relinquished attachment is portrayed as rising beyond the human sphere, his 'tejas' symbolizing moral-spiritual authority that transcends worldly power.
Yudhiṣṭhira mounts a chariot and begins a swift upward ascent, his radiance filling earth and sky—an epic sign that his final passage is underway and that his life’s dharmic stature is being affirmed in a cosmic register.