Shloka 25
Adhyaya 11 — Draupadī’s Grief, Demand for Justice, and Bhīma’s Departure
“यह बात सम्पूर्ण जगतमें प्रसिद्ध है कि वारणावतनगरमें जब कुन्तीके पुत्रोंपर भारी संकट पड़ा था, तब आप ही द्वीपके समान उनके रक्षक हुए थे ।।
yaḥ bāta sampūrṇa-jagat-e prasiddhā asti yat Vāraṇāvata-nagare yadā Kuntī-putreṣu bhārī saṅkaṭaḥ apatat, tadā tvam eva dvīpa iva teṣāṃ rakṣakaḥ abhavaḥ. hiḍimba-darśane ca eva tathā tvam abhavo gatiḥ; tathā Virāṭa-nagare Kīcakena bhṛśa-arditām.
Kilala ito sa buong daigdig: sa lungsod ng Vāraṇāvata, nang mapasailalim sa mabigat na panganib ang mga anak ni Kuntī, ikaw lamang ang naging tagapagtanggol nila—gaya ng isang pulo para sa nalulunod. Gayundin, sa pagharap kay Hiḍimba, ikaw ang naging kanlungan nila; at gayon din sa lungsod ng Virāṭa, nang sila’y malupit na pinahirapan ni Kīcaka.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical ideal of steadfast protection: in moments of extreme danger, a righteous ally becomes a ‘refuge’ for the vulnerable. It praises consistent guardianship across different trials, implying that true strength is measured by how one shields others in संकट (crisis).
Vaiśampāyana recalls earlier episodes where the Pāṇḍavas faced peril—at Vāraṇāvata, during the Hiḍimba encounter, and in Virāṭa’s city under Kīcaka’s oppression—and states that the addressed person repeatedly served as their protector and refuge.