Mahabharata — Shalya Parva, Shloka 5
बदरपाचन-तीर्थमाहात्म्यम् | Badarapācana Tīrtha Māhātmya
Indratīrtha and the Austerities of Srucāvatī & Arundhatī
वैशम्पायन उवाच शृणु राजन्निदं चित्र पूर्वकल्पे यथातथम् । आदी कृतयुगे राजन् वर्तमाने यथाविधि
Vaiśampāyana uvāca: śṛṇu rājann idaṃ citraṃ pūrvakalpe yathātatham | ādau kṛtayuge rājan vartamāne yathāvidhi ||
វៃសម្បាយនៈបានមានព្រះបន្ទូលថា៖ «សូមស្តាប់ ឱ ព្រះមហាក្សត្រ នូវរឿងអស្ចារ្យនេះ ដូចដែលបានកើតឡើងពិតប្រាកដក្នុងយុគមុន។ នៅដើមកាល ក្នុងក្រឹតយុគ ឱ ព្រះមហាក្សត្រ ពេលដែលសកលលោកដំណើរការតាមច្បាប់ដែលបានកំណត់…»
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds fidelity to tradition and truth in narration—an ethical commitment to report events “as they really happened,” and it invokes the Kṛta Yuga as a paradigm of dharma functioning according to prescribed order (vidhi).
Vaiśampāyana addresses the king and introduces a remarkable account from a former age, setting a temporal frame (“in the beginning, in the Kṛta Yuga”) before proceeding to the story that follows.
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