Shloka 20
शकुनि (हिरण्मय-पक्षी) उपदेशः — Vighasāśin and the Difficulty of Gārhasthya
देवा वै दुष्करं कृत्वा विभूतिं परमां गता: । तस्माद् गार्हस्थ्यमुद्रोढुं दुष्करं प्रत्रवीमि व:,इस दुष्कर व्रतका अनुष्ठान करके देवताओंने उत्तम वैभव प्राप्त किया है। यह गृहस्थधर्मका पालन ही दुष्कर व्रत है। मैं तुमलोगोंसे इसी दुष्कर व्रतका भार उठानेके लिये कह रहा हूँ
devā vai duṣkaraṁ kṛtvā vibhūtiṁ paramāṁ gatāḥ | tasmād gārhasthyam udroḍhuṁ duṣkaraṁ prabravīmi vaḥ ||
この難行を成し遂げて、神々は至上の繁栄に到った。ゆえに汝らに告げる。家住の生（家長のダルマ）の重荷を担うこと自体が、まさしく難き誓戒である——この厳しい修行を引き受けよ。
अजुन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse elevates gṛhastha-dharma (the householder’s responsibilities) as a demanding spiritual discipline: like the gods who gained supreme excellence through a hard vow, one should regard sustaining family and society through righteous conduct as a difficult yet ennobling vrata.
Arjuna speaks, pointing to the gods as an example of attaining greatness through arduous observance, and urges his listeners to undertake the ‘hard vow’ of the householder path—bearing its obligations as a serious ethical and spiritual commitment.