Shloka 19
दुर्योधनस्य बलिवर्णनम् — Duryodhana’s Description of Tribute at the Rājasūya
स तु गच्छन्ननेकाग्र: सभामेको<5न्वचिन्तयत् । श्रियं च तामनुपमां धर्मराजस्य धीमत:
sa tu gacchann anekāgraḥ sabhām eko 'nvacintayat | śriyaṃ ca tām anupamāṃ dharmarājasya dhīmataḥ ||
मार्ग में जाते हुए वह अनेक प्रकार की चिन्ताओं से व्याकुल था; अकेला ही वह परम बुद्धिमान् धर्मराज युधिष्ठिर की अलौकिक सभा और उसकी अनुपम लक्ष्मी का चिन्तन करता रहा।
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Outer prosperity and grandeur (śrī, sabhā) are not merely decorative; they shape minds and ethics in politics—evoking admiration, insecurity, and envy. The verse highlights how attention to another’s righteous success can become a source of inner agitation, a moral warning about uncontrolled comparison and desire.
A person is traveling onward, mentally unsettled and thinking alone about Yudhiṣṭhira’s extraordinary assembly hall and unmatched prosperity. The narration sets up the psychological background for later reactions to the Pāṇḍavas’ splendour in the Sabha context.