Shloka 3
Adhyāya 90: Babhruvāhana’s Reception and the Commencement of Yudhiṣṭhira’s Aśvamedha
तर्पितिषु द्विजाग्रयेषु ज्ञातिसम्बन्धिबन्धुषु । दीनान्धकृपणे वापि तदा भरतसत्तम
Vaiśaṃpāyana uvāca: tarpiteṣu dvijāgryeṣu jñāti-sambandhi-bandhuṣu | dīnāndha-kṛpaṇe vāpi tadā bharata-sattama ||
毗湿摩波耶那说道：当最上等的婆罗门已得满足，亲族、姻亲与友人亦皆称心——乃至贫者、盲者与困厄之人也都饱足之时，婆罗多族中最杰出者啊，就在那一刻（尤提施提罗大施之名四方传扬，花雨纷纷落在法王头上），一只獴来到那里。无垢者啊，它的眼睛湛蓝，一侧身躯金光灿然。大地之主啊，它一到便发出一声咆哮，骇人如霹雳。
वैशग्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage foregrounds dāna and hospitality as ethical duties: true royal and ritual success is measured not merely by grandeur but by whether all classes—especially the vulnerable (poor, blind, destitute)—are genuinely satisfied. The sudden arrival of the mongoose signals an impending moral evaluation of the celebrated charity.
After the sacrificial distribution has satisfied Brahmins, relatives, friends, and even the needy, Yudhiṣṭhira’s generosity becomes widely acclaimed and flowers rain upon him. At that climactic moment a blue-eyed mongoose, golden on one side, enters and roars like a thunderbolt—introducing a dramatic challenge or commentary on the merit of the rite.