Shloka 142
Hiḍimbā’s Petition, Conditional Union with Bhīma, and the Birth-Naming of Ghaṭotkaca (आदि पर्व, अध्याय १४३)
इति श्रीमहाभारते आदिपर्वणि जतुगृहपर्वणि वारणावतयात्रायां द्विचत्वारिंशदधिकशततमो< ध्याय:,इस प्रकार श्रीमहाभारत आदिपर्वके अन्तर्गत जतुय॒हपर्वमें वारणावतयात्राविषयक एक सौ बयालीसवाँ अध्याय पूरा हुआ
iti śrīmahābhārate ādiparvaṇi jatugṛhapārvaṇi vāraṇāvatayātrāyāṃ dvi-catvāriṃśad-adhika-śatatamo 'dhyāyaḥ
Thus, in the Śrī Mahābhārata, within the Ādi Parva, in the section concerning the lac-house episode, the chapter on the journey to Vāraṇāvata—being the one hundred and forty-second—comes to an end. The colophon marks the close of this narrative unit, signaling a transition in the plot where the Pāṇḍavas’ movement toward Vāraṇāvata forms part of a larger scheme of deception and impending danger, raising ethical questions about treachery, duty, and vigilance.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
As a colophon, the line itself teaches indirectly: it frames the episode as a completed unit and invites reflection on the ethical stakes of the Vāraṇāvata journey—how adharma can operate through covert plots, and why discernment and steadfastness in dharma are necessary when facing treachery.
This is the closing marker of the chapter describing the journey to Vāraṇāvata within the lac-house (jatugṛha) episode. It signals that the narrative has reached the end of this chapter and is poised to move forward into the next development of the plot surrounding the Vāraṇāvata scheme.