Shloka 2
Go-apahāra (Cattle Theft), Go-dāna (Cow-Gift), and Suvarṇa-dakṣiṇā (Gold Fee): Karmic Consequence and Purificatory Merit
निविशन्त्यां पुरा पार्थ द्वारवत्यामिति श्रुति: । अदृश्यत महाकूपस्तृणवीरुत्समावृत:
bhīṣma uvāca | niviśantyāṃ purā pārtha dvāravatyām iti śrutiḥ | adṛśyata mahākūpas tṛṇavīrutsamāvṛtaḥ |
Wika ni Bhīṣma: “O Pārtha, narinig namin ang ganitong salaysay: noong unang panahon, nang itinatatag pa lamang ang lungsod ng Dvāravatī, may lumitaw roong isang napakalaking balon na natatakpan ng mga damo at baging.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames the account as received tradition (śruti), reminding the listener that moral and dharmic instruction in the Mahābhārata is often conveyed through remembered reports and exemplary narratives; it also hints that what is hidden (like an overgrown well) may carry significance when revealed.
Bhīṣma addresses Arjuna and introduces a traditional report about the early settling of Dvāravatī: during that time, a large well, concealed by grasses and creepers, was noticed—setting up a story connected with that discovery.