Shloka 36
Tapovana-praveśaḥ — The King’s Entry into the Sacred Grove and Vision of the Āśrama
आश्रमस्थान् महर्षीश्न धर्षयन्तस्ततस्तत: । अब्रद्याण्या वीर्यमदा मत्ता मदबलेन च,वे वेद और ब्राह्मणके विरोधी, पराक्रमके नशेमें चूर तथा अहंकार और बलसे मतवाले होकर इधर-उधर आश्रमवासी महर्षियोंका भी तिरस्कार करने लगे
āśramasthān maharṣīn dharṣayantastatastataḥ | abrahmaṇyā vīryamadā mattā madabalena ca ||
Vaiśampāyana said: Drunk with the pride of their prowess, hostile to the Vedas and to brāhmaṇas, and intoxicated by arrogance and brute strength, they went about from place to place harassing even the great sages dwelling in their forest hermitages. The passage underscores how power without restraint turns into adharma—violence against the spiritually devoted and contempt for sacred learning.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Strength and heroism become destructive when joined with mada (arrogant intoxication). Dharma requires reverence for Vedic learning and restraint toward the vulnerable and the spiritually devoted; contempt for sages and brāhmaṇas is portrayed as a clear mark of adharma.
The text describes a group behaving lawlessly: roaming about, they harass the maharṣis living in hermitages. Their conduct is driven by vīryamada—pride in power—and by hostility to the Vedas and brāhmaṇas.