Shloka 25
Mahāprasthānika-parva Adhyāya 2: The Northward March, Sight of Himavat and Meru, and the Sequential Falls
युधिषछ्िर उवाच अतिभुक्तं च भवता प्राणेन च विकत्थसे । अनवेक्ष्य परं पार्थ तेनासि पतित: क्षितौ
yudhiṣṭhira uvāca
atibhuktaṃ ca bhavatā prāṇena ca vikatthase |
anavekṣya paraṃ pārtha tenāsi patitaḥ kṣitau ||
Yudhiṣṭhira dit : «Tu t’es adonné à l’excès, et tu te vantais même de ton souffle de vie. Ô Pārtha, faute de considérer ce qui est plus élevé—faute de viser le bien suprême—tu es tombé sur la terre.»
युधिषछ्िर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Excess and self-boasting—especially attachment to one’s own vitality and prowess—lead to moral and spiritual decline. The verse warns that neglecting the ‘higher’ (param), i.e., the supreme good and disciplined dharma, results in a fall.
During the great departure (mahāprasthāna), Yudhiṣṭhira addresses Pārtha (Arjuna) with a sharp moral diagnosis: Arjuna’s fall is attributed to overindulgence and pride, and to failing to keep sight of the higher aim that should govern a life of dharma.