Shloka 21
Khāṇḍava-dāha: Indra’s Countermeasures and the Nāga Aśvasena’s Escape (आदि पर्व, अध्याय २१८)
भगवान् श्रीकृष्ण बोले--नरश्रेष्ठ पार्थ! क्षत्रियोंक विवाहका स्वयंवर एक प्रकार है, परंतु उसका परिणाम संदिग्ध होता है; क्योंकि स्त्रियोंका स्वभाव अनिश्चित हुआ करता है (पता नहीं, वे स्वयंवरमें किसका वरण करें)
bhagavān śrīkṛṣṇa uvāca—naraśreṣṭha pārtha! kṣatriyāṇāṃ vivāhasya svayaṃvaraḥ ekaḥ prakāraḥ; kintu tasya pariṇāmaḥ saṃdigdhaḥ bhavati, yataḥ strīṇāṃ svabhāvaḥ aniścitaḥ—na hi jñāyate, svayaṃvare tāḥ kam varayiṣyanti iti.
Śrī Kṛṣṇa said: “O best of men, Pārtha! Among the modes of marriage for kṣatriyas, the svayaṃvara is one recognized form; yet its outcome remains uncertain, for a woman’s choice can be unpredictable—one cannot know whom she will select in the assembly.”
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even when a practice is socially sanctioned (like the kṣatriya svayaṃvara), its ethical and practical outcome may be uncertain because it depends on individual choice; therefore one should weigh consequences, not merely rely on formal legitimacy.
The speaker advises Pārtha about the svayaṃvara as a recognized kṣatriya marriage form, while cautioning that its result is unpredictable since the bride’s selection cannot be foreknown.