Shloka 3
अर्जुनस्य तीर्थयात्रा तथा मणलूर-सम्बन्धः
Arjuna’s Pilgrimage and the Maṇalūra Alliance
कथं च पञ्च कृष्णायामेकस्यां ते नराधिपा: । वर्तमाना महाभागा नाभिद्यन्त परस्परम्,वे महान् सौभाग्यशाली नरेश जब एक ही कृष्णाके प्रति अनुरक्त थे, तब उनमें आपसमें फूट कैसे नहीं हुई?
kathaṃ ca pañca kṛṣṇāyām ekasyāṃ te narādhipāḥ | vartamānā mahābhāgā nābhidyanta parasparam ||
Janamejaya asked: “How was it that those five fortunate kings, all devoted to a single Kṛṣṇā (Draupadī), did not fall into mutual discord? When such great rulers were attached to one woman, how did no division arise among them?”
जनमेजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds a dharmic concern: strong desire and shared attachment can easily breed rivalry, so sustained harmony among powerful persons requires restraint, mutual respect, and adherence to an accepted moral order. It prepares the ground for explaining how dharma and discipline prevented jealousy among the brothers.
In the frame dialogue, King Janamejaya questions the narrator about a striking situation: the five Pāṇḍava brothers all share Draupadī as wife, yet they do not become divided. He asks how such an arrangement avoided conflict among them.