Shloka 1
Adhyāya 123 — Droṇa’s Pedagogy: Arjuna’s Preeminence, Ekalavya’s Self-Training, and the Bhāsa-Lakṣya Trial
: द्वाविशर्त्याधेकशततमो< ध्याय: युधिष्ठिर
vaiśampāyana uvāca | saṃvatsaradhṛte garbhe gāndhāryā janamejaya | āhvayāmāsa vai kuntī garbhārthe dharmam acyutam |
Vaiśampāyana berkata: “Wahai Janamejaya! Setelah genap setahun Gāndhārī mengandung, Kuntī pun memanggil Dharma—yang tidak binasa sifatnya—agar ia memperoleh seorang anak.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames progeny and dynastic continuity within a moral-religious order: Kuntī seeks a child not by mere desire but through invoking Dharma, suggesting that rightful ends should be pursued through righteous means and divine-aligned conduct.
As Gāndhārī’s pregnancy extends to a full year, Kuntī performs an invocation to Dharma to obtain conception—setting up the birth of Yudhiṣṭhira and the unfolding contrast between the Kaurava and Pāṇḍava origins.