Shloka 18

Adhyāya 3: Indra’s Invitation and Yudhiṣṭhira’s Refusal to Abandon the Dog

Svargārohaṇa Test

Devanagari script

धर्मरज उवाच अभिजातोऊसि राजेन्द्र पितुर्व॒त्तेन मेधया । अनुक्रोशेन चानेन सर्वभूतेषु भारत

Transliteration

dharmarāja uvāca | abhijāto 'si rājendra pitur vṛttena medhayā | anukrośena cānena sarvabhūteṣu bhārata ||

Translation

Dharmarāja nói: “Hỡi đại vương, ngài quả thật là người sinh ra cao quý—tự chứng tỏ xứng đáng với dòng dõi của một người cha cao thượng—nhờ hạnh kiểm ngay chính, trí tuệ, và lòng từ mẫn mà ngài dành cho mọi loài hữu tình, hỡi hậu duệ của Bharata.”

Word by Word

• {'dharmarāja uvāca': 'Dharmarāja (Yudhiṣṭhira) said', 'abhijātaḥ asi': 'you are well-born

• of noble birth', 'rājendra': 'O best of kings

• O king', 'pituḥ': 'of (your) father', 'vṛttena': 'by conduct, behavior, moral character', 'medhayā': 'by intelligence, discernment', 'anukrośena': 'by compassion, pity, mercy', 'ca': 'and', 'anena': 'by this (quality/act)', 'sarvabhūteṣu': 'toward/in all beings

• among all creatures', 'bhārata': 'O Bhārata

Speaker

धर्मरज उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Dharmarāja (Yudhiṣṭhira)
• rājendra (addressed king)
• Bhārata (descendant of Bharata)
• pituḥ (the father, implied)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Nobility is validated not merely by birth but by lived virtues—right conduct, clear intelligence, and compassion toward all beings; these qualities make one truly worthy of one’s lineage and fit for kingship.

What is happening in the narrative?

During the Mahāprasthāna (the great departure), Dharmarāja addresses a kingly figure and praises him, affirming that his behavior, wisdom, and universal compassion demonstrate genuine noble birth and moral excellence.