Shloka 53
Uttanka’s Viśvarūpa Request and the ‘Uttanka Clouds’ Boon (उत्तङ्क-विष्वरूप-दर्शनम्)
इस प्रकार श्रीमह्ाभारत आश्वमेधिकपववके अन्तर्गत अनुगीतापर्वनें उत्तकुकके उपाख्यानमें श्रीकृष्ण और उत्तकुकका समागमविषयक तिरपनवाँ अध्याय पूरा हुआ
iti prakāraṃ śrīmahābhārata āśvamedhikaparvaṇi antargata anugītāparvaṇi uttakukopākhyāne śrīkṛṣṇa-uttakukayoḥ samāgama-viṣayakaḥ tripañcāśattamo 'dhyāyaḥ pūrṇaḥ
Thus ends the fifty-third chapter, concerning the meeting of Śrī Kṛṣṇa and Uttakuka, within the Uttakuka episode of the Anugītā section, which is included in the Aśvamedhika Parva of the Śrī Mahābhārata. The closing formula signals the completion of a narrative unit and frames the episode as part of the larger ethical and reflective discourse that follows the war, where encounters and recollections serve to reaffirm dharma and right understanding.
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
This line is a colophon rather than a doctrinal verse: its function is to mark closure and locate the episode within the Mahābhārata’s hierarchy (Parva → sub-section → episode → chapter). Ethically, it underscores that post-war narratives and meetings are framed as vehicles for reaffirming dharma and reflective understanding.
The text announces the completion of the fifty-third chapter whose topic is the meeting between Śrī Kṛṣṇa and Uttakuka, situated in the Uttakuka episode of the Anugītā section within the Aśvamedhika Parva.