Shloka 224
खाण्डवदाहोत्तर-वरप्रदानम्
Boons after the Khāṇḍava Burning
इस प्रकार श्रीमहाभारत आदिपव॑ीके अन्तर्गत खाण्डवदाहपर्वमें गाण्डीवादिदानविषयक दो सौ चौबीसवाँ अध्याय पूरा हुआ
iti prakāraḥ śrīmahābhārata ādiparvaṇi antar-gata khāṇḍavadāha-parvaṇi gāṇḍīvādi-dāna-viṣayaka dviśata-caturviṃśatitamo 'dhyāyaḥ pūrṇaḥ
Thus ends the two-hundred-and-twenty-fourth chapter of the Gāṇḍīva and related gifts, within the Khāṇḍava-burning section of the Ādi Parva of the sacred Mahābhārata. The narrator marks the close of this unit, signaling a transition in the unfolding account and framing the episode as a completed narrative segment.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
This line functions as a colophon: it teaches no new doctrine directly, but it models the epic’s careful organization—marking completion, preserving textual boundaries, and helping the listener/reader track the progression of themes and episodes.
The narrator signals that the chapter dealing with the subject of the Gāṇḍīva and related gifts—within the Khāṇḍava-burning episode of the Ādi Parva—has concluded, preparing the text to move to the next chapter/segment.