Shloka 186
Adhyāya 188: Mārkaṇḍeya’s Account of Yuga-Decline and the Restoration Motif
Kali-yuga to Kalki
इस प्रकार श्रीमह्या भारत वनपवकि अन्तर्गत मार्कण्डेययमास्यापर्वमें सरस्वती- ताक्ष्यसंवादविषयक एक सौ छियासीवाँ अध्याय पूरा हुआ
iti prakāraṁ śrīmahābhārate vanaparvaṇi antargata-mārkaṇḍeya-samāsyāparvaṇi sarasvatī-tākṣya-saṁvāda-viṣayaka ekaśata-ṣaḍaśītitamo 'dhyāyaḥ pūrṇaḥ
Demikian berakhir bab ke-186 Mahābhārata, Vana Parva, dalam sub-bahagian Markandeya (Samāsya), mengenai dialog antara Sarasvatī dan Tākṣya. Kolofon ini menandai penutupan episod pengajaran dan renungan ini sebagai satu unit yang lengkap dalam naratif pengembaraan di rimba.
ताक्ष्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
This verse is a colophon rather than a doctrinal statement: it teaches by framing—marking the end of a self-contained dialogue unit (Sarasvatī–Tākṣya) within Markandeya’s narrated material, reminding the reader that the discourse is meant to be received as a complete lesson within the larger ethical and narrative arc of the forest book.
The text announces the completion of the chapter that treated the Sarasvatī–Tākṣya dialogue, situating it within the Vana Parva and the Markandeya sub-section; it functions as an editorial/narrative closure before the Mahābhārata proceeds to the next unit.