Shloka 296
उज्छं तदा शुक्लपक्षे मध्यं तपति भास्करे । बारंबार छठा काल आता; किंतु उन्हें भोजन नहीं मिलता था। अतः वे सब-के-सब भूखे ही रह जाते थे। एक दिन ज्येष्ठके शुक्लपक्षमें दोपहरीके समय उस परिवारके सब लोग उज्छ लानेके लिये चले
ujjhaṃ tadā śuklapakṣe madhyaṃ tapati bhāskare |
Nakula said: “At that time, in the bright fortnight, when the Sun was scorching at midday, they would repeatedly go out at the sixth part of the day; yet they did not obtain food. Therefore all of them remained hungry. One day, in the bright fortnight of Jyeṣṭha, at noon, the entire family set out to bring ujjha (a kind of wild grain/food).”
नकुल उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage foregrounds dharma under scarcity: even when hunger and harsh conditions prevail, one’s conduct and choices are tested. It sets up an ethical context where endurance, restraint, and right action amid deprivation become the measure of character.
Nakula describes a time of severe hardship: during the bright fortnight, under the scorching midday sun, a family repeatedly goes out to gather ‘ujjha’ for food but often returns empty-handed and remains hungry. On one particular day in the month of Jyeṣṭha, they all go out at noon to collect it.