Shloka 24
ईदृशाद् वाचकादू राजन श्रुत्वा भारत भारतम् | नियमस्थ: शुचि: श्रोता शृण्वन् स फलमश्षुते,राजन! भरतनन्दन! नियमपरायण पवित्र श्रोता ऐसे वाचकसे महाभारतकी कथा सुनकर श्रवणका पूरा-पूरा फल पाता है
īdṛśād vācakād ū rājān śrutvā bhārata bhāratam | niyamasthaḥ śuciḥ śrotā śṛṇvan sa phalam aśnute, rājan! bharatanandana! |
Vaiśampāyana said: O King—O scion of Bharata—when the Mahābhārata is heard from a reciter of such a kind, a listener who is disciplined and pure, listening with observant restraint, attains the full fruit of that hearing. The emphasis is that the ethical quality of both the teacher (reciter) and the listener (disciplined, purified) completes the spiritual and moral benefit of the epic’s narration.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that the full spiritual and ethical benefit (phala) of hearing the Mahābhārata arises when it is received from a worthy reciter and heard by a listener who is disciplined (niyamastha) and pure (śuci). The listener’s inner preparation and the integrity of transmission are essential to the fruit of śravaṇa.
Vaiśampāyana continues instructing the king (Janamejaya), describing the conditions under which hearing the Mahābhārata yields complete merit—namely, hearing it from an appropriate narrator and listening with purity and observant restraint.