Shloka 18
अर्जुनस्य लक्ष्यवेधः
Arjuna’s Hitting of the Target at the Svayaṃvara
कि हि वित्तेन नः कार्य स्वर्गेप्सूनां द्विजोत्तम । यदस्माकं धनाध्यक्ष: प्रभूतं धनमाहरत्
ki hi vittena naḥ kāryaṃ svargepsūnāṃ dvijottama | yad asmākaṃ dhanādhyakṣaḥ prabhūtaṃ dhanam āharat ||
ഹേ ദ്വിജോത്തമാ! സ്വർഗ്ഗം ആഗ്രഹിക്കുന്ന ഞങ്ങൾക്ക് ധനം എന്തിന്? കാരണം നമ്മുടെ ധനാധ്യക്ഷൻ—സാക്ഷാൽ കുബേരൻ—അപാരമായ ധനം കൊണ്ടുവന്നിരുന്നു.
वसिष्ठ उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse contrasts the pursuit of svarga (heavenly merit) with attachment to wealth: for those oriented toward higher spiritual goals, money is not intrinsically necessary, especially when material needs are already met.
Vasiṣṭha addresses a brāhmaṇa as he explains that his group (the Bhārgavas, by the Hindi gloss) had no real need to seek wealth, since Kubera—the divine lord/treasurer of riches—had already supplied them with abundant treasure.