Shloka 31
Adhyāya 6: Pañca-mahābhūta–guṇa-nirdeśa and Sudarśana-dvīpa
Five Elements, Sensory Qualities, and a Cosmographic Island
मेरोस्तु पश्चिमे पाश्वे केतुमालो महीपते
merostu paścime pārśve ketumālo mahīpate | rājan meruke paścima-bhāge ketumāla-dvīpaḥ, tatraiva atyanta-viśālaḥ jambūkhaṇḍa-nāma pradeśaḥ, yo nandanavanavat manohara iti pratibhāti | bhārata tatra-nivāsināṃ āyuḥ daśa-sahasra-varṣāṇi bhavati |
संजय बोले—महीपते! मेरु के पश्चिम पार्श्व में केतुमाल नामक द्वीप है। वहीं जम्बूखण्ड नाम का अत्यन्त विशाल प्रदेश है, जो नन्दन-वन के समान मनोहर है। हे भारत! वहाँ के निवासियों की आयु दस हजार वर्ष कही जाती है।
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse primarily conveys a cosmographic vision: the world is portrayed as vast, ordered, and wondrous, with regions of extraordinary beauty and longevity. Ethically, it frames kingship and human concerns within a larger cosmic scale, encouraging humility and perspective.
Sañjaya is describing mythic geography to the king (addressed as Bhārata/mahīpati), locating Ketumāla on the western side of Mount Meru and praising a great region called Jambūkhaṇḍa as Nandana-like, adding that its inhabitants live for ten thousand years.