Shloka 22
Brahmāstra-pratisaṃhāraḥ, Parīkṣit-nāmakaraṇam, Nagarotsava-varṇanam
Withdrawal of the Brahmāstra; Naming of Parīkṣit; Description of Civic Festivities
यथा सत्यं च धर्मश्न मयि नित्यं प्रतिष्ठितौ । तथा मृत: शिशुरयं जीवतादभिमन्युज:,“यदि मुझमें सत्य और धर्मकी निरन्तर स्थिति बनी रहती हो तो अभिमन्युका यह मरा हुआ बालक जी उठे
yathā satyaṃ ca dharmaś ca mayi nityaṃ pratiṣṭhitau | tathā mṛtaḥ śiśur ayaṃ jīvatād abhimanyujaḥ ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “If truth and dharma are indeed ever firmly established in me, then let this dead infant—the son of Abhimanyu—return to life.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical power of satya (truthfulness) and dharma (righteous conduct): when these virtues are unwaveringly embodied, they become a source of moral and even miraculous efficacy, expressed here as a truth-act (satyakriyā) invoked for the restoration of life.
In the Ashvamedhika Parva’s account surrounding the continuation of the Kuru line after the war, a speaker invokes a conditional declaration grounded in personal truth and dharma, praying that Abhimanyu’s dead infant (Parīkṣit) may revive if those virtues truly abide in the declarant.