Shloka 14
Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Public Request for Consent to Enter the Forest (अनुज्ञा-प्रार्थना)
ग्रामाग्रहारद्वीपाब्यो मणिहेमजलार्णव: । जगत् सम्प्लावयामास धृतराष्ट्रोडुपोद्धत:
grāmāgrahāradvīpābhyo maṇihemajalārṇavaḥ | jagat samplāvayāmāsa dhṛtarāṣṭroḍupoddhataḥ ||
वैशम्पायन बोले— दान में दिए गए गाँवों और कर-मुक्त अग्रहारों के द्वीपों से मानो मणि और सुवर्ण-जल से भरा एक महासागर उठ खड़ा हुआ। धृतराष्ट्र-रूपी चन्द्रमा से उद्दीप्त होकर वह दान-सागर उफन पड़ा और समस्त जगत् को आप्लावित कर गया—अर्थात् उसकी व्यापक दानशीलता सर्वत्र फैल गई।
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse elevates dāna (generosity) as a dharmic force that can ‘flood’ the world with benefit. By portraying gifts—especially land grants and wealth—as an ocean, it suggests that righteous giving, when vast and well-directed, becomes socially transformative and spiritually meritorious, even for a king burdened by past failings.
Vaiśampāyana describes Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s great giving as a metaphorical ocean filled with gems and gold. Villages and agrahāras are likened to islands, and Dhṛtarāṣṭra is compared to the moon that raises the tide—indicating that his presence and resolve intensify the scale of the donations, which spread widely among recipients.