Shloka 18
Ādi Parva, Adhyāya 178 — Royal Contestants Assemble; Cosmic Witnesses; The Bow Remains Unstrung
खनताधिगतं वित्तं केनचिद् भुगुवेश्मनि । तद् वित्त ददृशु: सर्वे समेता: क्षत्रियर्षभा:,तात! कुछ दूसरे-दूसरे कारणोंका विचार करके उस समय उन्होंने क्षत्रियोंको धन प्रदान किया था। वत्स! तदनन्तर किसी क्षत्रियने अकस्मात् धरती खोदते-खोदते किसी भुगुवंशीके घरमें गड़ा हुआ धन पा लिया। तब सभी श्रेष्ठ क्षत्रियोंने एकत्र होकर उस धनको देखा
khanatādhigataṃ vittaṃ kenacid bhṛguveśmani | tad vittaṃ dadṛśuḥ sarve sametāḥ kṣatriyarṣabhāḥ |
Vasiṣṭha said: “While digging, someone came upon buried wealth in the house of a Bhṛgu-descendant. Then all the foremost Kṣatriyas assembled together and examined that treasure.”
वसिष्ठ उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds an ethical problem around wealth and rightful ownership: treasure discovered in another’s dwelling (especially a Brāhmaṇa/Bhārgava household) becomes a test of restraint, justice, and adherence to dharma rather than mere power-based appropriation.
In Vasiṣṭha’s narration, someone digging unexpectedly finds buried wealth in a Bhṛgu-descendant’s house. Hearing of it, the leading Kṣatriyas gather and inspect the treasure, setting up a dispute or deliberation about how such wealth should be treated.