Shloka 4
Droṇācārya’s Assessment of the Pāṇḍavas: Nīti, Kāla, and Intelligence (विराटपर्व, अध्याय २६)
अस्य वर्षस्य शेषं चेद् व्यतीयुरिह पाण्डवा: । निवृत्तसमयास्ते हि सत्यव्रतपरायणा:
asya varṣasya śeṣaṃ ced vyatīyur iha pāṇḍavāḥ | nivṛttasamayās te hi satyavrataparāyaṇāḥ |
Waiśampāyana berkata: Jika para Pāṇḍava melewati sisa tahun ini di sini dengan cara yang sama, maka masa yang ditentukan bagi mereka akan genap; sebab mereka teguh pada sumpah kebenaran.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights dharma as fidelity to one’s pledged word: the Pāṇḍavas are portrayed as satyavrata—committed to truth and vow-keeping—so that once the stipulated term is completed, their subsequent action against wrongdoing becomes ethically grounded rather than impulsive.
Vaiśampāyana reflects that if the Pāṇḍavas successfully spend the remaining part of the year in Virāṭa’s realm without violating the conditions of their exile, their term will be fulfilled; freed from the constraint of the vow, they will then be poised to bring severe trouble upon the Kauravas.