Shloka 13
Vyāsa’s Boon-Offer and Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Remorse in the Forest Assembly (आश्रमवासिक पर्व, अध्याय ३६)
वने स मुनिशि: सर्व: पूज्यमानो महातपा: । त्वगस्थिमात्रशेष: स षण्मासानभवन्नूप:
vane sa muniśiḥ sarvaḥ pūjyamāno mahātapāḥ | tvag-asthi-mātra-śeṣaḥ sa ṣaṇmāsān abhavan nūpaḥ ||
那罗陀说道：“在那林中，凡居住其间的诸仙都以格外的敬礼尊崇他。大苦行者持国王（Dhṛtarāṣṭra）瘦削至几乎只剩皮裹骨架；就在那般境况中，他度过了六个月。”
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the dharmic ideal that true honor follows inner discipline: when a former king embraces austerity and detachment, even forest sages revere him. It frames late-life renunciation as an ethical transformation from power to self-mastery.
Nārada describes Dhṛtarāṣṭra living in the forest among sages. The ascetics honor him, and his body becomes extremely emaciated—only skin and bones—while he continues his austerities for six months.