Shloka 53
Nakula’s Declaration and the Uñchavṛtti Brāhmaṇa’s Superior Merit (Āśvamedhika Parva, Adhyāya 92)
एवमेतत् तदा वृत्ते यज्ञे तस्य महात्मन: । पश्यतां चापि नस्तत्र नकुलो<न्तर्हितस्तदा,इस प्रकार महात्मा युधिष्ठिरका यज्ञ समाप्त होनेपर यह घटना घटी थी और वह नेवला हमलोगोंके देखते-देखते वहाँसे गायब हो गया था
evam etat tadā vṛtte yajñe tasya mahātmanaḥ | paśyatāṃ cāpi nas tatra nakulo 'ntarhitas tadā ||
एवमेतत् तदा वृत्ते यज्ञे तस्य महात्मनः। पश्यतां चापि नस्तत्र नकुलोऽन्तर्हितस्तदा॥
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse closes the episode by stressing that extraordinary signs may appear and vanish, but the ethical point remains: ritual grandeur is not automatically equal to moral superiority; true merit is weighed by intention, compassion, and righteousness rather than spectacle.
After Yudhiṣṭhira’s sacrifice has concluded, the narrator reports that the mongoose—who had appeared during the rite and spoken critically—disappears suddenly in full view of the assembled witnesses.