Shloka 103
यक्ष उवाच अक्षयो नरक: केन प्राप्यते भरतर्षभ । एतनमे मृच्छत: प्रश्ननं तच्छीघ्र॑ वक्तुमहसि,यक्षने पूछा--भरतश्रेष्ठ) अक्षय नरक किस पुरुषको प्राप्त होता है? मेरे इस प्रश्नका शीघ्र ही उत्तर दो
yakṣa uvāca | akṣayo narakaḥ kena prāpyate bharatarṣabha | etan me pṛcchataḥ praśnaṃ tac chīghraṃ vaktum arhasi ||
The Yaksha said: “O bull among the Bharatas, by what conduct does one incur the unending hell? You must answer this question of mine without delay.”
यक्ष उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a dharma-inquiry: actions have consequences, and some forms of adharma are portrayed as leading to prolonged or ‘unending’ suffering. It urges moral clarity and accountability by demanding a precise ethical cause for such a fate.
In the Yaksha–Yudhiṣṭhira dialogue at the forest lake, the Yaksha tests Yudhiṣṭhira’s discernment through rapid questions. Here the Yaksha asks what kind of conduct causes one to attain ‘akṣaya naraka’ (unending hell), pressing him to answer promptly.