Shloka 17
Adhyāya 32: Rājasūya-Dīkṣā and Appointment of Court Offices (राजसूयदीक्षा तथा अधिकारविनियोगः)
पह्ववान् बर्बरांश्नैव किरातान् यवनाञछ्छकान् । ततो रत्नान्युपादाय वशे कृत्वा च पार्थिवान् | न्यवर्तत कुरुश्रेष्ठो नकुलश्रित्रमार्गवित्
pahlavān barbarāṃś caiva kirātān yavanān śakān | tato ratnāny upādāya vaśe kṛtvā ca pārthivān | nyavartata kuruśreṣṭho nakulaḥ citramārgavit ||
Vaiśampāyana disse: Nakula, o mais eminente entre os Kurus e versado em variadas estratégias, subjugou os Pahlavas, os Bárbaros, os Kirātas, os Yavanas e os Śakas — mlecchas ferozes que habitavam ilhas do mar. Tendo-os posto sob seu domínio e recebido daqueles reis tributo de gemas preciosas, retornou então em direção a Indraprastha.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights a model of royal power in which conquest culminates in the acceptance of overlordship and tribute, emphasizing political order and strategic governance rather than mere destruction—an ethic aligned with the rājasūya’s aim of establishing recognized sovereignty.
During the Pandavas’ campaign to gather submission for Yudhiṣṭhira’s rājasūya, Nakula defeats and subdues various frontier/foreign peoples (Pahlavas, Barbaras, Kirātas, Yavanas, Śakas), receives gems as tribute from their rulers, and then returns to Indraprastha.