Shloka 54
Vāraṇāvata-prasaṃsā and the Pāṇḍavas’ Departure (वरणावत-प्रशंसा तथा पाण्डव-प्रयाणम्)
अथ पिष्टोदकेनैनं लोभयन्ति कुमारका: । पीत्वा पिष्टरसं बाल: क्षीरं॑ पीत॑ मयापि च
atha piṣṭodakena enaṁ lobhayanti kumārakāḥ | pītvā piṣṭarasaṁ bālaḥ kṣīraṁ pītam mayāpi ca |
ヴァイシャンパーヤナは語った。すると子どもたちは、粉を溶かした水で彼を誘った。幼子はその粉水を飲むと、喜びに胸をふくらませ、踊り回って「ぼくも乳を飲んだぞ！」と叫んだ。この光景は、貧しさが無垢を嘲りの的にさらし、欠乏が子の尊厳と足ることの感覚を歪めうることを示し—それを見守る父の胸に深い苦悶を呼び起こす。
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage highlights the ethical harm caused by poverty and social mockery: deprivation can make even a child mistake substitutes for real nourishment, while public ridicule deepens suffering. It invites compassion and critiques a society that humiliates the vulnerable rather than supporting them.
A group of boys tease a child by offering flour-water as if it were milk. The child drinks it, becomes delighted, and proclaims he has drunk milk, even dancing—showing innocence and deprivation. The episode is narrated to convey the pain and humiliation surrounding the child’s condition.