Shloka 16
Śiva-stavarāja: Upamanyu’s Preface and Initiation of the Śarva-Nāma Enumeration
Anuśāsana-parva 17
इस प्रकार श्रीमहाभारत अनुशासनपर्वके अन्तर्गत दानधर्मपर्वमें मेघवाहनपर्वकी कथाविषयक सोलहवाँ अध्याय पूरा हुआ,प्रयत्नेनाधिगन्तव्यं धार्य च प्रयतात्मना । माड़ल्यं पौष्टिकं चैव रक्षोघ्नं पावनं महत्
iti prakāraṃ śrīmahābhārata anuśāsanaparvake antargata dānadharmaparvaṇi meghavāhanaparvaṇī kathāviṣayaka ṣoḍaśo 'dhyāyaḥ pūrṇaḥ | prayatnenādhigantavyaṃ dhāryaṃ ca prayatātmanā | māḍalyaṃ pauṣṭikaṃ caiva rakṣoghnaṃ pāvanaṃ mahat ||
Ainsi s’achève le seizième chapitre, consacré au récit de l’épisode de Meghavāhana, dans la section du Dāna-dharma de l’Anuśāsana Parva du Śrī Mahābhārata. L’enseignement est le suivant : il faut le rechercher avec ardeur et le conserver avec soin (cette discipline, ce mérite), l’âme tenue en bride. On dit qu’il procure bien-être et vigueur, repousse les puissances nuisibles et purifie puissamment ; c’est pourquoi il a grande valeur sur la voie du dharma, surtout dans le cadre du don et de la conduite juste.
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
One should pursue dharmic merit and right understanding with sustained effort (prayatna) and then preserve it through disciplined conduct (prayatātman). Such practice is praised as nourishing (pauṣṭika), protective against harmful influences (rakṣoghna), and deeply purifying (pāvana), aligning with the ethical thrust of the Dāna-dharma teachings.
The passage functions as a concluding colophon and summative statement: it marks the completion of the sixteenth chapter connected with the Meghavāhana-related narrative within the Dāna-dharma portion of the Anuśāsana Parva, and it closes by highlighting the value of diligent, self-controlled pursuit of the taught dharma.