Shloka 17
Dharma-vyādha on the Subtlety of Dharma, Karma, and the Continuity of the Jīva (Āraṇyaka-parva 200)
स मां प्रावारकर्ण चोलूकं॑ यथोचिते स्थाने प्रतिपाद्य तेनैव यानेन संस्थितो यथोचितं स्थानं प्रतिपेदे । तन्मयानुभूतं॑ चिरजीविनेदृशमिति पाण्डवानुवाच मार्कण्डेय:
sa māṃ prāvārakarṇa-colūkaṃ yathocite sthāne pratipādya tenaiva yānena saṃsthito yathocitaṃ sthānaṃ pratipede | tan-mayānubhūtaṃ cirajīvinā īdṛśam iti pāṇḍavān uvāca mārkaṇḍeyaḥ |
Então ele me deixou—envolto num manto e com ornamentos nas orelhas—no lugar que era devido. Permanecendo naquele mesmo veículo, ele próprio retornou à sua morada apropriada. Então Mārkaṇḍeya disse aos Pāṇḍavas: “Tal foi o acontecimento extraordinário que eu vivi, embora eu seja longevo.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights propriety and right placement (yathocita): actions are to be done in the fitting manner and fitting place, and extraordinary experiences gain authority when conveyed responsibly by a truthful, long-lived sage.
A figure (implied from prior context) sets Markandeya down at an appropriate location, then departs in the same conveyance to his own proper abode. Markandeya reports this remarkable experience to the Pāṇḍavas.