Shloka 216

स्कन्दसेनापत्याभिषेकः

Skanda’s Consecration as Devasenāpati

Devanagari script

इस प्रकार श्रीमहाभारत वनपर्वके अन्तर्गत मार्कण्डेयसमगास्यापर्वमें ब्राह्मण- व्याधसंवादविषयक दो सौ सोलहवाँ अध्याय पूरा हुआ

Transliteration

iti prakāraṁ śrīmahābhārata-vanaparvaṇi antargata-mārkaṇḍeya-samāsyāparvaṇi brāhmaṇa-vyādha-saṁvāda-viṣayakaḥ dviśata-ṣoḍaśattamo 'dhyāyaḥ pūrṇaḥ

Translation

ഇങ്ങനെ ശ്രീമഹാഭാരതത്തിലെ വനപർവാന്തർഗതമായ മാർകണ്ഡേയസമാസ്യാപർവത്തിൽ ബ്രാഹ്മണ-വ്യാധസംവാദവിഷയകമായ ഇരുനൂറ്റി പതിനാറാം അധ്യായം സമാപ്തമായി.

Word by Word

इतिthus; end-quote marker

प्रकारेणin this manner; by this way

श्रीrevered; auspiciousness (honorific)

महाभारतMahabharata

वनपर्वकेin the Vana-parvan (Forest Book)

अन्तर्गतincluded; contained within

मार्कण्डेयसमगास्यापर्वणिin the Markandeya-samagasya-parvan (a section titled thus)

ब्राह्मणof the Brahmin

व्याधof the hunter

संवादof the dialogue

विषयकconcerning; having as its subject

द्विशतtwo-hundredth

षोडशsixteenth

अध्यायःchapter

समाप्तःcompleted; finished

अभवत्was; became

Speaker

युधिछिर उवाच

Characters & Entities

श

श्रीमहाभारत

व

वनपर्व

म

मार्कण्डेयसमास्यापर्व

ब

ब्राह्मण

व

व्याध

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Even though this line is a colophon, it points to the ethical center of the preceding episode: dharma is validated by right conduct, humility, and discernment, not merely by birth or outward markers of religiosity.

What is happening in the narrative?

The text signals closure: the chapter on the Brahmin–hunter dialogue within the Mārkaṇḍeya-related section of the Vana Parva has concluded. It functions as an editorial/end-of-chapter marker rather than spoken dialogue.