Shloka 16
Ādi-parva Adhyāya 209: Śaraṇāgati of the Cursed Apsarases; Nārītīrtha-prasiddhi; Arjuna’s Vimocana
नाक्रामन्त यदा शापा बाणा मुक्ता: शिलास्विव । नियमान् सम्परित्यज्य व्यद्रवन्त द्विजातय:,पत्थरपर चलाये हुए बाणोंकी भाँति जब शाप उन्हें पीड़ित न कर सके, तब ब्राह्मगलोग अपने सारे नियम छोड़कर वहाँसे भाग चले
nākramanta yadā śāpā bāṇā muktāḥ śilāsv iva | niyamān samparityajya vyadravanta dvijātayaḥ ||
Nārada said: When the curses could not check them—like arrows shot at rocks—then the twice-born, abandoning their prescribed restraints, fled away from that place. The passage underscores how fear and helplessness can drive even the learned to forsake discipline when protective norms seem ineffective.
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
External authority (even a curse) may fail to restrain wrongdoing or danger; when inner steadiness is absent, people may abandon niyama (disciplined conduct) under pressure. The verse highlights the ethical contrast between prescribed restraint and panic-driven flight.
Nārada describes a moment when curses do not succeed in stopping the situation—compared to arrows striking rock without effect—so the twice-born, giving up their customary observances, run away from the place.