Shloka 12
Draupadī’s Lament and Theodicy: Dharma, Dice, and Īśvara’s Governance (Āraṇyaka-parva 31)
व्यासो वसिष्ठो मैत्रेयो नारदो लोमश: शुक: । अन्ये च ऋषय: सर्वे धर्मेणैव सुचेतस:,व्यास, वसिष्ठ, मैत्रेय, नारद, लोमश, शुक तथा अन्य सब महर्षि धर्मके पालनसे ही शुद्ध हृदयवाले हुए हैं
vyāso vasiṣṭho maitreyo nārado lomaśaḥ śukaḥ | anye ca ṛṣayaḥ sarve dharmeṇaiva sucetasaḥ ||
Yudhiṣṭhira berkata: “Vyāsa, Vasiṣṭha, Maitreya, Nārada, Lomaśa, Śuka—dan semua resi yang lain—menjadi suci hati dan jernih budi semata-mata melalui keteguhan mematuhi dharma.”
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that inner purity and clarity of understanding arise from living by dharma; even the greatest sages are presented as becoming ‘sucetasaḥ’ through righteous conduct.
Yudhiṣṭhira cites revered sages as authoritative examples, arguing that their spiritual excellence and purity were attained through adherence to dharma, thereby reinforcing dharma as the guiding principle in the forest-exile discourse.