Shloka 4
Virāṭanagara-nivāsa-nirṇaya
Decision to Reside in Virāṭa’s City
वैशम्पायन उवाच यथा विराटनगरे तव पूर्वपितामहा: । अज्ञातवासमुषितास्तच्छूणुष्व नराधिप
vaiśampāyana uvāca | yathā virāṭanagare tava pūrvapitāmahāḥ | ajñātavāsam uṣitās tac chṛṇuṣva narādhipa ||
Vaiśampāyana dit : «Ô roi, écoute tandis que je raconte comment tes ancêtres ont vécu jusqu’au bout leur temps de dissimulation dans la cité de Virāṭa.»
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even under pressure and vulnerability, one should uphold dharma through self-control, discretion, and faithful observance of vows—here, the vow of living incognito without revealing one’s identity.
The narrator Vaiśampāyana addresses the king and introduces the account of how the Pāṇḍavas (referred to as the listener’s forefathers) completed their period of concealment in Virāṭa’s city, setting up the events of the Virāṭa Parva.