Shloka 41
Svargārohaṇa-parva Adhyāya 2 — Yudhiṣṭhira’s Inquiry for His Kin and the Vision of a Punitive Realm
नकुल: सहदेवोहं धृष्टद्युम्नो5हमित्युत । द्रौपदी द्रौपदेयाश्व इत्येवं ते विचुक्रुशु:ः,उनके इस प्रकार पूछनेपर वे सब चारों ओरसे बोलने लगे--'प्रभो! मैं कर्ण हूँ। मैं भीमसेन हूँ। मैं अर्जुन हूँ। मैं नकुल हूँ। मैं सहदेव हूँ। मैं धृष्टद्युम्न हूँ। मैं द्रौपदी हूँ और हमलोग द्रौपदीके पुत्र हैं।! इस प्रकार वे सब लोग चिल्ला-चिल्लाकर अपना-अपना नाम बताने लगे
nakulaḥ sahadevo 'haṃ dhṛṣṭadyumno 'ham ity uta | draupadī draupadeyāś ca ity evaṃ te vicukruśuḥ ||
Vaiśaṃpāyana said: “(Some cried,) ‘I am Nakula!’ ‘I am Sahadeva!’ and also, ‘I am Dhṛṣṭadyumna!’ Others shouted, ‘I am Draupadī!’ and ‘We are the sons of Draupadī!’—thus they all cried out aloud, each proclaiming his or her own name.” In the ethical shadow of Svargārohaṇa, this frantic self-identification underscores the last human clinging to personal identity and fame even at the threshold of final passage, where truth is tested and attachments are stripped away.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
At the end of life’s journey, mere assertion of name and status is powerless; the narrative highlights how attachment to personal identity persists, yet the final passage demands truthfulness and detachment, aligning one’s self-understanding with dharma rather than ego.
A group of figures cry out loudly, each declaring who they are—Nakula, Sahadeva, Dhṛṣṭadyumna, Draupadī, and the Draupadeyas—responding to an inquiry by proclaiming their identities from all sides.