Shloka 51
सर्पसत्रे हुतानां नागानां नामपरिगणनम् | Enumeration of Nāgas Consumed in the Sarpasatra Fire
इस प्रकार श्रीमहाभारत आदिपव॑के अन्तर्गत आस्तीकपर्वमें यर्पसत्रोपक्रमसम्बन्धी इक्यावनवाँ अध्याय पूरा हुआ
iti prakāraṁ śrīmahābhārata-ādiparva-ke antargata āstīka-parva-meṁ sarpa-satra-opakrama-sambandhī ekyāvanavāṁ adhyāyaḥ pūrṇaḥ huā
Thus ends the fifty-first chapter of the Āstīka section within the Ādi Parva of the Śrī Mahābhārata, concerning the commencement and preliminaries of Janamejaya’s snake-sacrifice. The closing note signals a transition in the narrative, framing the ritual setting in which questions of duty, restraint, and the ethical limits of vengeance will be tested.
जनमेजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
As a colophon, the line does not teach through a direct maxim; it frames the ethical arena: a royal sacrifice driven by vengeance is being set in motion, preparing the reader to evaluate dharma—especially the limits of retribution and the need for restraint and right counsel.
This is an end-of-chapter closing statement indicating that the fifty-first chapter—about the preliminaries to the snake-sacrifice (sarpa-satra) within the Āstīka Parva of the Ādi Parva—has concluded, marking a transition to the next portion of the story.