Mahabharata 1.140.4 — Adi Parva, Adhyaya 140, Shloka 4
Hiḍimba’s Approach and Hiḍimbā’s Warning to Bhīmasena (हिडिम्बागमनम् / हिडिम्बा-भयवचनम्)
वैशम्पायन उवाच स प्रसन्नमनास्तेन परिपृष्टो द्विजोत्तम: । उवाच वचन तीक्ष्णं राजशास्त्रार्थदर्शनम्
Vaiśampāyana uvāca: sa prasannamanās tena paripṛṣṭo dvijottamaḥ | uvāca vacanaṃ tīkṣṇaṃ rājaśāstrārthadarśanam ||
വൈശമ്പായനൻ പറഞ്ഞു— ഇങ്ങനെ ചോദിക്കപ്പെട്ട ആ ദ്വിജോത്തമൻ ഉള്ളിൽ സന്തോഷിച്ചു; രാജശാസ്ത്രത്തിന്റെ അർത്ഥം വെളിപ്പെടുത്തുന്ന മൂർച്ചയുള്ള വാക്കുകൾ പറയാൻ തുടങ്ങി.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse signals that the forthcoming counsel will be grounded in rājaśāstra—practical statecraft—and will be tīkṣṇa, i.e., unsparing. It highlights a recurring Mahābhārata tension: political effectiveness may be taught in a way that challenges or tests ethical ideals, requiring the listener to discern dharma amid expedient advice.
Vaiśampāyana narrates that, after Dhṛtarāṣṭra questions him, the Brahmin Kaṇika feels pleased and begins delivering sharp instruction that explicates principles of kingship and governance. This verse functions as a transition into Kaṇika’s pointed political discourse.
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