Mahabharata — Adi Parva, Shloka 3
गरुडजन्म तथा विनतादास्यवृत्तान्तः
Garuḍa’s Birth and Vinatā’s Enslavement
विनतोवाच श्वेत एवाश्वराजो<यं किं वा त्वं मनन््यसे शुभे । ब्रृहि वर्ण त्वमप्यस्य ततो5त्र विपणावहे
Vinatovāca: śveta evāśvarājo ’yaṁ kiṁ vā tvaṁ manyase śubhe | brūhi varṇaṁ tvam apy asya tato ’tra vipaṇāvahai ||
வினதை கூறினாள்—“நல்லவளே, இந்தக் குதிரை அரசன் வெண்மையானவனே. நீ என்ன நினைக்கிறாய்? நீயும் அதன் நிறத்தைச் சொல்; பின்னர் இங்கே நாம் பந்தயம் வைப்போம்.”
शौनक उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds the ethical danger of wagers driven by pride and rivalry: a seemingly simple claim about “truth” (the horse’s color) becomes the seed of conflict, showing how attachment to winning can invite deceit and bondage.
Vinata addresses Kadru and asserts that the divine horse is white. She asks Kadru to state her own view of its color so that the two can place a bet—an exchange that sets up the later deception about the horse’s tail and Vinata’s ensuing servitude.
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