Shloka 188

कृतयुगवर्णनम् तथा राजधर्मोपदेशः

Kṛtayuga Description and Instruction on Royal Dharma

Devanagari script

इति श्रीमहाभारते वनपर्वणि मार्कण्डेयसमास्यापर्वणि अष्टाशीत्यधिकशततमो<ध्याय:

Transliteration

iti śrīmahābhārate vanaparvaṇi mārkaṇḍeyasamāsyāparvaṇi aṣṭāśītyadhikaśatatamo 'dhyāyaḥ

Translation

Así concluye el capítulo ciento ochenta y ocho del Vana Parva del Śrī Mahābhārata, dentro de la sección conocida como Mārkaṇḍeya-samāsya (el compendio de Mārkaṇḍeya). Este es el colofón final que señala el cierre del capítulo y lo sitúa en el marco ético y narrativo más amplio del Libro del Bosque, donde se reúnen enseñanzas y ejemplos para guiar la conducta en tiempos de adversidad.

Word by Word

• इति: thus; end-quotation marker
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इति

• श्रीमहाभारते: in the venerable Mahabharata
• श्रीमहाभारते: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: श्रीमहाभारत
• Form: Neuter, Locative, Singular

• वनपर्वणि: in the Vana-parvan (Forest Book)
• वनपर्वणि: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: वनपर्वन्
• Form: Neuter, Locative, Singular

• मार्कण्डेयसमास्यापर्वणि: in the Markandeya-samasyā-parvan (sub-section)
• मार्कण्डेयसमास्यापर्वणि: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: मार्कण्डेयसमास्यापर्वन्
• Form: Neuter, Locative, Singular

• अष्टाशीत्यधिकशततमः: the one-hundred-eighty-eighth (chapter)
• अष्टाशीत्यधिकशततमः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अष्टाशीत्यधिकशततम
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• अध्यायः: chapter
• अध्यायः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: अध्याय
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Śrī Mahābhārata
• Vana Parva
• Mārkaṇḍeya (by section name)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

This line is not a didactic verse but a colophon. Its function is to authenticate and locate the chapter within the Mahābhārata’s structure, reminding readers that teachings and narratives are transmitted in an ordered tradition and should be interpreted in their proper textual context.

What is happening in the narrative?

The narrative action pauses: the text signals the close of a chapter in the Vana Parva, specifically within the Mārkaṇḍeya-associated sub-section. It is an editorial/recensional marker rather than spoken dialogue content.