Shloka 14
Adhyāya 3: Indra’s Invitation and Yudhiṣṭhira’s Refusal to Abandon the Dog
Svargārohaṇa Test
त्यक्त्वा भ्रातृन् दयितां चापि कृष्णां प्राप्तो लोक: कर्मणा स्वेन वीर | श्वानं चैनं न त्यजसे कथं नु त्यागं कृत्स्नं चास्थितो मुहा[से5द्य
yudhiṣṭhira uvāca | tyaktvā bhrātṝn dayitāṃ cāpi kṛṣṇāṃ prāpto lokaḥ karmaṇā svena vīra | śvānaṃ cainaṃ na tyajase kathaṃ nu tyāgaṃ kṛtsnaṃ cāsthito mūḍhaḥ ||
因陀罗说道：“勇士啊，你既已舍弃诸兄弟，亦舍弃你所钟爱的黑公主克里希纳（德罗帕蒂），凭自身功德而得至天界；为何却不肯舍此犬？既已立于彻底出离之道，何以如今反堕迷妄——执著于一犬？”
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a moral tension between formal renunciation and compassionate fidelity. It questions whether ‘complete abandonment’ can coexist with attachment to a vulnerable being, setting up the ethical test: true dharma is not mere detachment but steadfast righteousness and protection of the dependent.
At the end of the great journey (mahāprasthāna), Yudhiṣṭhira reaches the threshold of heaven with a dog that has followed him. A divine voice challenges him to enter without the dog, and Yudhiṣṭhira responds by refusing to abandon it. This verse voices the challenge: since he has already left behind brothers and Draupadī, why not leave the dog too?