Shloka 29
बक-राक्षसस्य आह्वानम् तथा वृक्षयुद्धम्
Summons of Baka and the Tree-Weapon Engagement
त्रिषु लोकेषु यो राज्यं धर्मनित्यो$र्हते नृप: । सो<यं भूमौ परिश्रान्तः शेते प्राकृतवत् कथम्,“जो नित्य धर्मपरायण नरेश तीनों लोकोंका राज्य पानेके अधिकारी हैं, वे ही आज साधारण मनुष्योंकी भाँति थके-माँदे पृथ्वीपर कैसे पड़े हैं
triṣu lokeṣu yo rājyaṃ dharmanityo 'rhate nṛpaḥ | so 'yaṃ bhūmau pariśrāntaḥ śete prākṛtavat katham ||
Wika ni Vaiśampāyana: “Paano nangyari na ang haring ito—na laging matatag sa dharma at karapat-dapat sa paghahari sa tatlong daigdig—ay ngayo’y nakahimlay sa lupa, pagod na pagod, na parang karaniwang tao?”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even one who is supremely qualified by dharma and merit for the highest sovereignty can be brought low by circumstance; the verse highlights the contrast between ethical worthiness and the vulnerability of embodied life, prompting reflection on impermanence and compassion.
The narrator Vaiśampāyana expresses astonishment and concern on seeing a righteous king—fit to rule the three worlds—lying exhausted on the bare earth like an ordinary person, setting a tone of inquiry into the causes of this reversal.