Shloka 1
कृतयुगवर्णनम् तथा राजधर्मोपदेशः
Kṛtayuga Description and Instruction on Royal Dharma
हि >> आय न हुक है 7 अष्टा शीर्त्याधिकशततमोब् ध्याय: चारों युगोंकी वर्ष-संख्या एवं कलियुगके प्रभावका वर्णन
vaiśampāyana uvāca | tataḥ sa punar evātha mārkaṇḍeyaṃ yaśasvinam | papraccha vinayopeto dharmarājo yudhiṣṭhiraḥ ||
ヴァイシャンパーヤナは言った。—そののち、法（ダルマ）を護る者として名高く、しかも謙虚さを備えた王ユディシュティラは、再び栄えある聖仙マールカンデーヤに、恭しく問いかけた。
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Ethical learning begins with vinaya (humility): even a king identified with dharma approaches wisdom through respectful questioning, showing that authority is strengthened—not diminished—by reverence for truth and teachers.
The narrator Vaiśampāyana reports that Yudhiṣṭhira again turns to the sage Mārkaṇḍeya and poses a further question, signaling the continuation of a didactic conversation within the Vana Parva.