Shloka 22
कृतज्ञानां वदान्यानां गुरुशुश्रूषिणामपि । सहस्रदक्षिणानां च या गतिस्तामवाप्रुहि
sañjaya uvāca | kṛtajñānāṁ vadānyānāṁ guruśuśrūṣiṇām api | sahasradakṣiṇānāṁ ca yā gatis tām avāpruhi ||
Sanjaya said: “Tell me what final state is attained by those who are grateful and mindful of benefits received, who are generous, who faithfully serve their teachers, and who bestow gifts in the thousands as sacrificial fees. Declare to me that destiny.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights classical dharmic virtues—gratitude, generosity, devoted service to one’s teacher, and large-scale charitable giving (dakṣiṇā)—and frames them as causes of a higher ‘gati’ (destiny). It implies that ethical character and reverence for learning/teachers are spiritually consequential, not merely social virtues.
Sanjaya, in the course of reporting and reflecting within the Drona Parva, poses an inquiry about the ultimate destination attained by people distinguished by gratitude, liberality, faithful service to gurus, and lavish ritual/charitable gifts. The line functions as a prompt for a response about the fruits of such conduct.