Shloka 1
Damayantī’s Recognition by the Piplū Mark and Her Return to Vidarbha
अऑडआ कर (0) है ० षट्षष्टितमो<5 ध्याय: राजा नलके द्वारा दावानलसे कर्कोटक नागकी रक्षा तथा नागद्धवारा नलको आश्वासन ब॒हदश्व उवाच उत्सृज्य दमयन्तीं तु नलो राजा विशाम्पते । ददर्श दावं दहान्तं, महान्तं गहने वने,बृहदश्वच मुनि कहते हैं--युधिष्ठिर! दमयन्तीको छोड़कर जब राजा नल आगे बढ़ गये, तब एक गहन वनमें उन्होंने महान् दावानल प्रज्वलित होते देखा
bṛhadaśva uvāca | utsṛjya damayantīṃ tu nalo rājā viśāṃpate | dadarśa dāvaṃ dahantaṃ mahāntaṃ gahane vane ||
Bṛhadaśva berkata: “Wahai tuan manusia sekalian, setelah meninggalkan Damayantī, Raja Nala meneruskan perjalanan lalu terlihat olehnya, di dalam rimba yang lebat, suatu kebakaran hutan yang amat besar sedang marak menyala dengan ganas.”
ब॒हदश्व उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a moral crisis: Nala’s abandonment of Damayantī leads immediately into peril, suggesting that adharma (failure of duty and protection) precipitates further suffering and danger; it also sets the stage for later repentance, endurance, and restoration through right conduct.
Bṛhadaśva narrates to Yudhiṣṭhira that Nala, after leaving Damayantī, proceeds alone and encounters a massive forest fire in a dense woodland—an ominous externalization of his inner turmoil and the harshness of his exile.