Shloka 124
यक्ष उवाच प्रियस्ते भीमसेनो5यमर्जुनो व: परायणम् | स कस्मान्नकुलं राजन् सापत्नं जीवमिच्छसि,यक्षने कहा--राजन्! यह तुम्हारा प्रिय भीमसेन है और यह तुमलोगोंका सबसे बड़ा सहारा अर्जुन है; इन्हें छोड़कर तुम किसलिये सौतेले भाई नकुलको जिलाना चाहते हो?
yakṣa uvāca priyaste bhīmaseno ’yam arjuno vaḥ parāyaṇam | sa kasmān nakulaṃ rājan sāpātnaṃ jīvam icchasi ||
The Yaksha said: “O king, this Bhimasena is dear to you, and this Arjuna is your greatest refuge. Leaving them aside, why do you wish to restore to life Nakula—your half-brother, born of a different mother?”
यक्ष उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a dharma-test: true righteousness is not guided by personal preference or strategic advantage. The Yaksha challenges the king to justify choosing the life of a half-brother over the more ‘useful’ or more beloved brothers, probing impartiality, fairness to all mothers in the family, and commitment to ethical duty beyond self-interest.
In the Yaksha–Yudhiṣṭhira dialogue at the forest lake, the Yaksha questions the king after his brothers have fallen. Here the Yaksha points out that Bhima is dear and Arjuna is the main support, and asks why, instead of them, Yudhiṣṭhira wishes Nakula—his half-brother—to be restored to life.