Shloka 20
मागधगिरिव्रजप्रवेशः — Entry into Girivraja and Jarāsandha’s Protocol Inquiry
वैशम्पायन उवाच अथ दीर्घस्य कालस्य तपोवनचरो नृपः । सभार्य: स्वर्गमगमत् तपस्तप्त्वा बृहद्रथ:,वैशम्पायनजी कहते हैं--जनमेजय! तदनन्तर दीर्घकालतक तपोवनमें रहकर तपस्या करते हुए महाराज बृहद्रथ अपनी पत्नियोंके साथ स्वर्गवासी हो गये
Vaiśampāyana uvāca: atha dīrghasya kālasya tapovanacaro nṛpaḥ | sabhāryaḥ svargam agamat tapastaptvā bṛhadrathaḥ ||
Vaiśampāyana dit : Après un long temps, le roi Bṛhadratha, demeurant dans un ermitage forestier et s’adonnant aux austérités, s’en alla au ciel avec ses épouses.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the dharmic arc of life: after sustained discipline and withdrawal from worldly life into tapas, one attains higher realms. It presents ascetic practice and orderly renunciation as ethically valued, even for kings.
Vaiśampāyana tells Janamejaya that King Bṛhadratha lived for a long time in a forest of austerities, performed tapas, and then departed to heaven along with his wives.