Shloka 29
Svargārohaṇa-parva Adhyāya 2 — Yudhiṣṭhira’s Inquiry for His Kin and the Vision of a Punitive Realm
निवर्तितव्यो हि मया तथास्म्युक्तो दिवौकसै: | यदि श्रान्तो$सि राजेन्द्र त्वमथागन्तुमरहसि
nivartitavyo hi mayā tathāsm yukto divaukasaḥ | yadi śrānto 'si rājendra tvam athāgantum arhasi ||
毗湿摩波耶那说：“诸天吩咐我：当耶提史提罗感到疲惫之时，便须将你带回。因此我现在必须引你回返。若你确已倦乏，噢，诸王之最，请随我来。”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights niyama and dharma as obedience to a higher mandate: even in exalted, otherworldly contexts, one must act according to entrusted duty (nivartitavyaḥ), not personal preference. It also frames weariness as a criterion in a moral-spiritual test—whether the king will accept turning back when prompted.
The narrator reports that a divine messenger (speaking under the gods’ instruction) tells the addressed king that he has orders to bring him back once Yudhiṣṭhira becomes tired. Seeing (or presuming) fatigue, he urges the king to return with him.