Shloka 1
Ādi Parva, Adhyāya 10: Ruru’s Vow and Ḍuṇḍubha’s Appeal (रुरोः प्रतिज्ञा—डुण्डुभोपदेशः)
(दाक्षिणात्य अधिक पाठका १ श्लोक मिलाकर कुल २४ श्लोक हैं) ऑपन---+र< बक। है २ दशमो<ध्याय: रुरु मुनि और डुण्डुभका संवाद रुस्स्वाच मम प्राणसमा भार्या दष्टासीद् भुजगेन ह | तत्र मे समयो घोर आत्मनोरग वै कृत:,रुरु बोला--सर्प! मेरी प्राणोंके समान प्यारी पत्नीको एक साँपने डँस लिया था। उसी समय मैंने यह घोर प्रतिज्ञा कर ली कि जिस-जिस सर्पको देख लूँगा, उसे-उसे अवश्य मार डालूँगा। उसी प्रतिज्ञाके अनुसार मैं तुम्हें मार डालना चाहता हूँ। अतः आज तुम्हें अपने प्राणोंसे हाथ धोना पड़ेगा
rurur uvāca | mama prāṇasamā bhāryā daṣṭāsīd bhujagena ha | tatra me samayo ghora ātmanauraga vai kṛtaḥ ||
Ruru said: “My wife, as dear to me as my very life, was bitten by a serpent. In that moment I made a terrible vow: whenever I see a snake, I will surely kill it. Bound by that vow, I now intend to kill you; today you must forfeit your life.”
धर्मराज उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds the ethical tension between a grief-born vow and righteous conduct: personal loss can harden into indiscriminate retaliation, and the narrative invites reflection on whether a vow made in anguish should override discernment and compassion.
Ruru explains to a serpent that his beloved wife was once bitten by a snake, and that he then swore a harsh vow to kill any snake he encounters; therefore he now threatens this serpent’s life as an act of vowed retribution.