Shloka 14
Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Public Request for Consent to Enter the Forest (अनुज्ञा-प्रार्थना)
ग्रामाग्रहारद्वीपाब्यो मणिहेमजलार्णव: । जगत् सम्प्लावयामास धृतराष्ट्रोडुपोद्धत:
grāmāgrahāradvīpābhyo maṇihemajalārṇavaḥ | jagat samplāvayāmāsa dhṛtarāṣṭroḍupoddhataḥ ||
ヴァイシャンパーヤナは語った。「村々と免税の土地施与（アグラハーラ）によって形づくられた“島々”から、あたかも宝玉と黄金を水とする大海が立ち上がった。『月』たるドリタラーシュトラにより満ち膨れたその布施の海は、うねり高く溢れ出て、全世界を浸した——すなわち、土地と財によって示された彼の広大な慈施が、あまねく行き渡り、その及ぶところに入る者すべてに影響したのである。」
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse elevates dāna (generosity) as a dharmic force that can ‘flood’ the world with benefit. By portraying gifts—especially land grants and wealth—as an ocean, it suggests that righteous giving, when vast and well-directed, becomes socially transformative and spiritually meritorious, even for a king burdened by past failings.
Vaiśampāyana describes Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s great giving as a metaphorical ocean filled with gems and gold. Villages and agrahāras are likened to islands, and Dhṛtarāṣṭra is compared to the moon that raises the tide—indicating that his presence and resolve intensify the scale of the donations, which spread widely among recipients.