Shloka 29
अध्याय ८ — शल्यस्य सत्कारः, वरदानं, पाण्डवसमागमश्च (Śalya’s Reception, the Boon, and Meeting the Pāṇḍavas)
कुशलं राजशार्दूल कच्चित् ते कुरुनन्दन । अरण्यवासादू दिष्ट्यासि विमुक्तो जयतां वर,“नृपतिश्रेष्ठ कुरुनन्दन! तुम कुशलसे तो हो न? विजयी वीरोंमें श्रेष्ठ नरेश! यह बड़े सौभाग्यकी बात है कि तुम वनवासके कष्टसे छुटकारा पा गये
kuśalaṁ rājaśārdūla kaccit te kurunandana | araṇyavāsād diṣṭyāsi vimukto jayatāṁ vara ||
Vaiśampāyana berkata: “Wahai harimau di antara raja-raja, wahai kebanggaan keturunan Kuru—adakah engkau sejahtera? Sungguh besar tuahnya engkau terlepas daripada derita hidup di rimba, wahai yang terbaik dalam kalangan para pemenang.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse models dharmic speech in political and familial contexts: one first asks after another’s welfare (kuśalam) and acknowledges relief from suffering with gratitude (diṣṭyā). It frames kingship not merely as power but as responsibility tempered by courtesy, empathy, and recognition of fortune.
Vaiśampāyana, narrating the epic, reports a respectful address to a Kuru prince/king: the speaker inquires about his well-being and notes—‘by good fortune’—that he has been freed from the hardships of forest exile, marking a transition from exile back into the arena of royal affairs.