Shloka 98
नलस्य बाहुकत्वेन ऋतुपर्णनगरप्रवेशः
Nala as Bāhuka enters Ṛtuparṇa’s city
कि नु स्वप्नो मया दृष्ट: को5यं विधिरिहाभवत् | क्व नु ते तापसा: सर्वे क्व तदाश्रममण्डलम्,(उसने सोचा--) “क्या मैंने कोई स्वप्न देखा है? यहाँ यह कैसी अद्भुत घटना हो गयी? वे सब तपस्वी कहाँ चले गये और वह आश्रममण्डल कहाँ है?”
ki nu svapno mayā dṛṣṭaḥ? ko ’yaṃ vidhir ihābhavat? kva nu te tāpasāḥ sarve? kva tad āśramamaṇḍalam?
Bṛhadaśva said: “Have I seen some dream? What strange turn of events has occurred here? Where have all those ascetics gone, and where is that whole circle of the hermitage?”
बृहृदश्च उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights human uncertainty when confronted with sudden change: one should pause, inquire, and discern reality rather than react blindly—an attitude aligned with careful judgment (viveka) amid bewildering events.
Bṛhadaśva, seeing the hermitage scene altered or emptied, expresses astonishment and questions whether he has dreamt; he asks where the ascetics and the hermitage precinct have gone, marking a moment of abrupt narrative shift and mystery.