Shloka 18
The Syamantaka Jewel: Accusation, Recovery, and Kṛṣṇa’s Marriage to Satyabhāmā
हतं प्रसेनं अश्वं च वीक्ष्य केशरिणा वने । तं चाद्रिपृष्ठे निहतमृक्षेण ददृशुर्जना: ॥ १८ ॥
hataṁ prasenaṁ aśvaṁ ca vīkṣya keśariṇā vane taṁ cādri-pṛṣṭhe nihatam ṛkṣeṇa dadṛśur janāḥ
جنگل میں انہوں نے شیر کے ہاتھوں مارے گئے پرसेن اور اس کے گھوڑے کو دیکھا؛ آگے پہاڑ کی ڈھلوان پر وہی شیر بھی مردہ ملا، جسے رِکش (جامبوان) نے ہلاک کیا تھا۔
FAQs
This verse states that Prasena and his horse were killed in the forest by a lion, and that lion was later found killed on a mountain ridge by a bear (Jambavan), setting the chain of events that led to the Syamantaka jewel changing hands.
The verse implies a bear killed the lion; in this chapter’s narrative that bear is Jambavan, whose possession of the jewel becomes the key reason Krishna later enters the cave and confronts him to recover it.
It highlights how conclusions based on partial evidence can be misleading; careful investigation and commitment to truth are essential before blaming others—an ethic Krishna exemplifies in this episode.