Shloka 177
Ādi-parva Adhyāya 3 — Janamejaya’s Rite, Dhaumya’s Parīkṣā, and Uttanka’s Kuṇḍala Quest (सर्पसत्रप्रस्तावना–गुरुपरीक्षा–उत्तङ्कोपाख्यान)
सौतिर्वाच स एवमुक्तस्तु नृपोत्तमेन द्विजोत्तम: पुण्यकृतां वरिष्ठ: । उवाच राजानमदीनसत्त्व॑ स्वमेव कार्य नृपते कुरुष्व,उग्रश्रवाजी कहते हैं--राजाओंमें श्रेष्ठ जनमेजयके इस प्रकार कहनेपर पुण्यात्माओंमें अग्रगण्य विप्रवर उत्तंकने उन उदार हृदयवाले नरेशसे कहा--“महाराज! वह कार्य मेरा नहीं, आपका ही है, आप उसे अवश्य कीजिये”
sautir uvāca | sa evam uktas tu nṛpottamena dvijottamaḥ puṇyakṛtāṃ variṣṭhaḥ | uvāca rājānam adīnasattvaṃ svam eva kāryaṃ nṛpate kuruṣva ||
Sauti said: Thus addressed by the best of kings, that foremost of Brahmins—preeminent among the doers of merit—spoke to the king of undaunted spirit: “O King, this task is not mine; it is yours alone. You must carry it out.”
जनमेजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse emphasizes personal responsibility in dharma: a ruler must not shift essential duties onto others. Even a revered Brahmin directs the king to own and execute what properly belongs to royal obligation.
Within the frame-story, Sauti reports that after King Janamejaya speaks, the foremost Brahmin responds to the king, urging him to undertake the required action himself, affirming that it is the king’s own task.