Shloka 386

Adhiratha-Rādhā Discover the Casket; Vasuṣeṇa (Karṇa) is Adopted and Formed

Devanagari script

सम्पूर्णानीह वर्षाणि चतुर्दश महाद्युते । मार्कण्डेयजी कहते हैं--भरतश्रेष्ठ युधिष्ठि! तदनन्तर पिता दशरथने अत्यन्त प्रसन्न होकर कुछ-कुछ लाल नेत्रोंवाले श्रीरामचन्द्रजीसे पुन: कहा--“महाद्युते! तुम्हारे वनवासके चौदह वर्ष पूरे हो गये हैं। अब तुम अयोध्या जाओ और वहाँका शासन अपने हाथमें लो'

Transliteration

sampūrṇānīha varṣāṇi caturdaśa mahādyute |

Translation

Mārkaṇḍeya said: “O great-splendoured one, the fourteen years of exile here have now been fully completed.” In the narrative frame, this signals the ethical turning-point where a vow-bound period ends and rightful kingship may be resumed without violating dharma.

Word by Word

• सम्पूर्णानि: completed, fully finished
• सम्पूर्णानि: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सम्पूर्ण
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Plural

• इह: here
• इह: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इह

• वर्षाणि: years
• वर्षाणि: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: वर्ष
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Plural

• चतुर्दश: fourteen
• चतुर्दश: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: चतुर्दश
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Plural

• महाद्युते: O great-splendored one
• Type: Noun
• Root: महाद्युति
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

Speaker

मार्कण्डेय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Mārkaṇḍeya
• Rāma
• Daśaratha
• Yudhiṣṭhira
• Ayodhyā
• vanavāsa (exile in the forest)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Dharma includes faithfully completing a pledged term (such as exile) and then returning to one’s rightful duty—here, the transition from forest-dwelling to responsible governance once the vow’s limit is fulfilled.

What is happening in the narrative?

Mārkaṇḍeya, speaking within the Mahābhārata’s storytelling frame, cites the moment when the fourteen-year period of Rāma’s forest exile is declared complete, prompting the call to return to Ayodhyā and assume rule.