Shloka 17
Ajñātavāsa-saṅkalpaḥ — Yudhiṣṭhira’s Resolve and Dhaumya’s Exempla on Concealment
ततः सत्यवत: कायात् पाशबद्ध॑ वशं गतम् । अड्गुष्ठमात्रं पुरुषं निश्चकर्ष यमो बलात्,तदनन्तर यमराजने सत्यवानके शरीरसे पाशमें बँधे हुए अंगुष्ठमात्र परिमाणवाले विवश हुए जीवको बलपूर्वक खींचकर निकाला
tataḥ satyavataḥ kāyāt pāśabaddhaṁ vaśaṁ gatam | aṅguṣṭhamātraṁ puruṣaṁ niścakarṣa yamo balāt ||
Then Yama, by force, drew out from Satyavān’s body the thumb-sized Person—the bound and helpless life-principle caught in his noose. The scene underscores the stark power of Death over embodied life, while preparing the moral counterpoint of steadfast righteousness and devoted resolve that will challenge this inevitability.
मार्कण्डेय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the vulnerability of embodied life before Death’s authority, setting up the ethical contrast where steadfast dharma and devoted resolve (as in the Sāvitrī narrative) confront and morally negotiate what seems inevitable.
Yama binds Satyavān with his noose and forcibly draws out the thumb-sized ‘puruṣa’—the life-principle/jīva—from Satyavān’s body, marking the moment of death and the beginning of the ensuing moral encounter.