Shloka 5
अश्रमवासिनां विषादः — Lament in Hastināpura after the Elders’ Forest Withdrawal
किमाहाराश्ष ते तत्र ससैन्या न्यवसन् प्रभो | सान्तःपुरा महात्मान इति तद् ब्रूहि मेडनघ,प्रभो! निष्पाप मुने! सैनिकों और अन्तःपुरकी स्त्रियोंके साथ वे महात्मा पाण्डव क्या आहार करके वहाँ निवास करते थे?
Janamejaya uvāca |
kim āhārāś ca te tatra sa-sainyā nyavasan prabho |
sa-antaḥpurā mahātmāna iti tad brūhi me 'nagha ||
阇那美阇耶说道：“尊者啊，他们在那里与军旅及内宫妇女同住之时，那些大心的般度子弟以何为食？无垢者啊，请为我说明。”
जनमेजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames an ethical inquiry into how great persons sustain themselves when transitioning toward a more austere, dharma-centered life—highlighting that even practical matters like food can reflect restraint, duty, and the moral tone of a life-stage.
King Janamejaya asks the narrator (addressed as ‘prabho’ and ‘anagha’) to describe what the Pāṇḍavas ate while residing there along with their troops and the women of the inner household, seeking concrete details of their mode of living.