Shloka 20
Nala’s Embassy to Damayantī and the Gods’ Proposal (नलस्य दूतत्वं देवप्रस्तावश्च)
यज्ैश्न विविधैस्तात कृतं पापमरिंदम | अवधूय महाराज गच्छेम स्वर्गमुत्तमम्,“तात! शत्रुदमन! महाराज! हम नाना प्रकारके यज्ञोंका अनुष्ठान करके अपने किये हुए पापको धो-बहाकर उत्तम स्वर्गलोकमें चलेंगे
yajñaiś ca vividhaiḥ tāta kṛtaṃ pāpam ariṃdama | avadhūya mahārāja gacchema svargam uttamam ||
Vaiśampāyana nói: “Hỡi con yêu—hỡi kẻ khuất phục quân thù, hỡi đại vương—sau khi cử hành nhiều loại tế lễ, chúng ta sẽ gột rửa tội lỗi đã gây ra, rồi lên đường đến cõi trời tối thượng.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse presents a classical epic idea: wrongdoing (pāpa) can be addressed through prescribed acts of expiation—here, diverse yajñas—so that one may become purified and attain a higher posthumous state (svarga). It highlights the ethical impulse toward accountability and restoration, even when expressed through ritual means.
The narrator Vaiśampāyana reports a resolve expressed to a king addressed affectionately as “tāta” and honorifically as “ariṃdama/mahārāja”: after undertaking various sacrifices, they will remove the sin incurred and proceed to the highest heaven.