Shloka 51

अध्याय १९० — वामदेव-वाम्य-वृत्तान्तः

The Vāmadeva Horses Episode and the Ethics of Promise

Devanagari script

एवं दृष्टं मया राजंस्तस्मिन्‌ प्राप्ते युगक्षये । आश्चर्य भरतश्रेष्ठ सर्वधर्मभूतां वर,सम्पूर्ण धर्मात्माओंमें श्रेष्ठ भरतकुल-तिलक युधिष्ठिर! इस प्रकार उस प्रलयकालके आनेपर मुझे यह आश्चर्यजनक अनुभव हुआ था

Transliteration

evaṁ dṛṣṭaṁ mayā rājan tasmin prāpte yugakṣaye | āścaryaṁ bharataśreṣṭha sarvadharmabhṛtāṁ vara ||

Translation

O King, when the end of that age arrived, I witnessed this with my own eyes. It was a wondrous event, O best of the Bharatas, foremost among those who uphold all dharma.

Word by Word

• {'evaṁ': 'thus, in this manner', 'dṛṣṭam': 'seen, witnessed', 'mayā': 'by me', 'rājan': 'O king (vocative)', 'tasmin': 'in that (time/event)', 'prāpte': 'having arrived

• when it came to pass', 'yuga-kṣaye': 'at the end of an age

• at the age’s dissolution', 'āścaryam': 'a wonder

• something astonishing', 'bharata-śreṣṭha': 'O best of the Bharatas', 'sarva-dharma-bhṛtām': 'of those who bear/maintain all dharma', 'vara': 'best, foremost (vocative)'}

Speaker

मार्कण्डेय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Mārkaṇḍeya
• Yudhiṣṭhira

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse frames cosmic catastrophe (yuga-kṣaya) within an ethical lens: Yudhiṣṭhira is praised as a bearer of dharma, implying that even amid dissolution, the measure of a person is steadfast righteousness and receptivity to sacred testimony.

What is happening in the narrative?

Mārkaṇḍeya addresses Yudhiṣṭhira directly, stating that at the end of an age he personally witnessed an astonishing event; this line functions as a transition into (or reinforcement of) a marvel-filled account connected with pralaya and the yuga-cycle.