Shloka 193
समन्तपञ्चक-आख्यानम् तथा अक्षौहिणी-प्रमाणनिर्णयः
Samantapañcaka Narrative and the Measure of an Akṣauhiṇī
मार्कण्डेयसमास्या च पुराणं परिकीर्त्यते । ऐन्द्रद्युम्नमुपाख्यानं धौन्धुमारं तथैव च,इसी मार्कण्डेय-समागममें पुराणोंकी अनेक कथाएँ, राजा इन्द्रद्युम्नका उपाख्यान तथा धुन्धुमारकी कथा भी है
mārkaṇḍeya-samāsyā ca purāṇaṁ parikīrtyate | aindradyumnam upākhyānaṁ dhaundhumāraṁ tathaiva ca ||
मार्कण्डेयांच्या समागमाच्या प्रसंगात पुराणकथा देखील सांगितली जाते; तसेच राजा इन्द्रद्युम्नाचे उपाख्यान आणि धुन्धुमाराची कथाही तेथे वर्णिली जाते.
राम उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse signals that the Mahābhārata frames ethical instruction through Purāṇic-style exempla: revered sages and exemplary kings are invoked so that dharma is learned through remembered narratives rather than abstract rules.
The speaker notes that within the section describing the encounter with the sage Mārkaṇḍeya, additional traditional stories are included—specifically the episode of King Indradyumna and the account of Dhundhumāra.