Mahabharata 3.239.20 — Vana Parva, Adhyaya 239, Shloka 20
दुर्योधनस्य प्रायोपवेशः — शकुनिसान्त्वनम् तथा कृत्याह्वानम्
Duryodhana’s Fast: Śakuni’s Consolation and the Summoning of a Kṛtyā
उचितं हि सदा गन्तुं घोषयात्रां विशाम्पते | एवं च त्वां पिता राजन् समनुज्ञातुमहति
ucitaṃ hi sadā gantuṃ ghoṣayātrāṃ viśāmpate | evaṃ ca tvāṃ pitā rājan samanujñātum arhati ||
उचितं हि सदा गन्तुं घोषयात्रां विशाम्पते । एवं च त्वां पिता राजन् समनुज्ञातुमर्हति ॥
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a practical, socially acceptable reason—inspecting the cattle at a ghoṣa—as a dharmically ‘proper’ pretext by which a prince/king may seek legitimate permission from his father, showing how duty and prudence can be aligned with accepted norms.
Vaiśampāyana advises that a visit to the cowherd settlement is inherently appropriate and can be presented as the stated purpose of travel; therefore the addressee’s father, the king, can reasonably authorize the journey.
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