Shloka 35
Nakula’s Declaration and the Uñchavṛtti Brāhmaṇa’s Superior Merit (Āśvamedhika Parva, Adhyāya 92)
तथा कथयतां तेषां देवराज: पुरंदर:
tathā kathayatāṃ teṣāṃ devarājaḥ purandaraḥ | nikāmavarṣī parjanyo babhūva janamejaya ||
毗湿摩波耶那说：当诸仙如是言说之时，哦，阇那美阇耶，因陀罗——天神之王、破城者——宛如随意倾注的雨云。见诸仙苦行之力，威德无量的主宰便开始降雨；直至彼祭圆满，因陀罗仍依其意愿在彼处不断施雨，以资助仪式，并敬礼苦行者的灵威。
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the Mahābhārata’s ethic that spiritual discipline (tapas) and properly conducted sacrifice (yajña) draw supportive cosmic order: even Indra responds by sustaining the rite with timely rain, showing reverence for ascetic power and the sanctity of ritual duty.
As the sages continue their discourse, Vaiśampāyana tells Janamejaya that Indra, seeing the sages’ austerity, begins to rain like a cloud that pours at will, maintaining rainfall at the sacrificial site until the yajña is completed.