Shloka 2
अश्रमवासिनां विषादः — Lament in Hastināpura after the Elders’ Forest Withdrawal
विदुरे चापि संसिद्धि धर्मराजं व्यपाश्रिते । वसत्सु पाण्डुपुत्रेषु सर्वेष्वाश्रममण्डले,जनमेजयने पूछा--ब्रह्मन!] जब अपनी धर्मपत्नी गान्धारी और बहू कुन्तीके साथ नृपश्रेष्ठ पृथ्वीपति धृतराष्ट्र वनवासके लिये चले गये, विदुरजी सिद्धिको प्राप्त होकर धर्मराज युधिष्ठिरके शरीरमें प्रविष्ट हो गये और समस्त पाण्डव आश्रममण्डलमें निवास करने लगे, उस समय परम तेजस्वी व्यासजीने जो यह कहा था कि "मैं आश्चर्यजनक घटना प्रकट करूँगा” वह किस प्रकार हुई? यह मुझे बताइये
vidure cāpi saṁsiddhiṁ dharmarājaṁ vyapāśrite | vasatsu pāṇḍuputreṣu sarveṣv āśramamaṇḍale ||
विदुरे चापि संसिद्धिं धर्मराजं व्यपाश्रिते । वसत्सु पाण्डुपुत्रेषु सर्वेष्वाश्रममण्डले ॥ “अद्भुतं दर्शयिष्यामि” इति यदुक्तं व्यासेन, तत्कथं समभवत्? एतन्मे ब्रूहि ॥
जनमेजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the movement from worldly roles to spiritual culmination: elders embrace renunciation, and Vidura’s ‘siddhi’ signifies inner realization that ultimately seeks refuge in dharma itself—embodied by Yudhiṣṭhira. It frames dharma not merely as rule-following but as a living principle that can ‘receive’ and preserve wisdom when the realized withdraw from ordinary life.
Janamejaya asks Vaiśaṁpāyana to explain a marvel foretold by Vyāsa: after Dhṛtarāṣṭra departs for the forest with Gāndhārī and Kuntī, Vidura attains perfection and enters into Yudhiṣṭhira, while the Pāṇḍavas reside in the hermitage precinct. The question sets up the account of how this extraordinary event took place.