Shloka 3
ययातेर्वानप्रस्थतपःस्वर्गारोहणम् | Yayāti’s Vānaprastha Austerities and Ascent to Heaven
ताभि: सखीभि: सहिता सर्वाभिमुदिता भृशम् । क्रीडन्त्योडभिरता: सर्वा: पिबन्त्यो मधुमाधवीम्
tābhiḥ sakhībhiḥ sahitā sarvābhimuditā bhṛśam | krīḍantyo 'dbhī ratāḥ sarvāḥ pibantyo madhumādhavīm ||
Vaiśampāyana dit : Entourées de leurs compagnes, toutes, débordantes de joie, se livrèrent aux jeux selon leur désir. Absorbées dans leurs ébats au milieu des eaux, elles burent la douceur miellée du printemps—image des délices de la jeunesse qui, dans le grand fil du récit, annonce combien le plaisir sans garde peut devenir le théâtre de rencontres lourdes de conséquences et de complications morales.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights carefree enjoyment and companionship, but within the Mahābhārata’s moral frame it also suggests that unguarded pleasure and leisure can become the backdrop for events with lasting ethical consequences.
A group of young women, delighted and together with their friends, are playing in/around the water and drinking a sweet springtime beverage or nectar-like essence, setting the scene for the next encounter in the Yayāti–Devayānī–Śarmiṣṭhā narrative.