Shloka 45
Svargārohaṇa-parva Adhyāya 2 — Yudhiṣṭhira’s Inquiry for His Kin and the Vision of a Punitive Realm
कि कृत्वा धृतराष्ट्रस्य पुत्रो राजा सुयोधन: । तथा श्रिया युत: पापै: सह सर्व: पदानुगै:,“धृतराष्ट्रका पुत्र राजा सुयोधन कौन-सा पुण्यकर्म करके अपने समस्त पापी सेवकोंके साथ वैसी अद्भुत शोभा और सम्पत्तिसे संयुक्त हुआ है?
kiṁ kṛtvā dhṛtarāṣṭrasya putro rājā suyodhanaḥ | tathā śriyā yutaḥ pāpaiḥ saha sarvaḥ padānugaiḥ ||
Vaiśaṃpāyana said: “By performing what meritorious deed did King Suyodhana, the son of Dhṛtarāṣṭra, become endowed with such splendor and prosperity—together with all his sinful followers and attendants?”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a moral inquiry central to the Mahābhārata’s karma-ethics: even those known for wrongdoing may attain heavenly splendor if some powerful merit (puṇya) exists, and the narrative invites reflection on how specific deeds yield specific results, sometimes producing outcomes that appear paradoxical.
Vaiśaṃpāyana raises a question about Duryodhana’s posthumous state—how he is seen endowed with remarkable prosperity and radiance, and notably along with his attendants—prompting an explanation of what meritorious act(s) could account for this result.