Mahabharata · 1.206.33–34
॥
Devanāgarī
वैशंपायन उवाच
एवम् उक्तस् तु कौन्तेयः पन्नगेश्वरकन्यया ॥
कृतवांस् तत् तथा सर्वं धर्मम् उद्दिश्य कारणम् ॥
स नागभवने रात्रिं ताम् उषित्वा प्रतापवान् ॥
उदिते ऽभ्युत्थितः सूर्ये कौरव्यस्य निवेशनात् ॥
Transliteration (IAST)
vaiśaṃpāyana uvāca
evam uktas tu kaunteyaḥ pannageśvarakanyayā ||
kṛtavāṃs tat tathā sarvaṃ dharmam uddiśya kāraṇam ||
sa nāgabhavane rātriṃ tām uṣitvā pratāpavān ||
udite 'bhyutthitaḥ sūrye kauravyasya niveśanāt ||
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
एवम् उक्तः तु कौन्तेयः पन्नगेश्वरकन्ययाevam uktaḥ tu kaunteyaḥ pannageśvarakanyayāthus addressed by the daughter of the lord of the nagas, Kaunteya
कृतवान् तत् तथा सर्वं धर्मम् उद्दिश्य कारणम्kṛtavān tat tathā sarvaṃ dharmam uddiśya kāraṇamdid all of that accordingly, holding dharma as the cause [/basis];
सः नागभवने रात्रिं ताम् उषित्वा प्रतापवान्saḥ nāgabhavane rātriṃ tām uṣitvā pratāpavānhe, the mighty one, having spent that night in the abode of the nagas,
उदिते अभ्युत्थितः सूर्ये कौरव्यस्य निवेशनात्udite abhyutthitaḥ sūrye kauravyasya niveśanātrose at sunrise from the dwelling of Kauravya;
वैशंपायनvaiśaṃpāyanaoriginal form "vaiśaṃpāyana", added to complete the word-by-word coverage
उक्तस्uktasoriginal form "uktas", added to complete the word-by-word coverage
कृतवांस्kṛtavāṃsoriginal form "kṛtavāṃs", added to complete the word-by-word coverage
सsaoriginal form "sa", added to complete the word-by-word coverage
ऽभ्युत्थितः'bhyutthitaḥoriginal form "'bhyutthitaḥ", added to complete the word-by-word coverage
Translation
Thus addressed by the daughter of the lord of the nagas, Kaunteya did all of this accordingly, holding dharma as the cause; he, the mighty one, having spent that night in the abode of the nagas, rose at sunrise from the dwelling of Kauravya.
Version
c5a1f97e3bd6 · published Jul 12, 2026, 6:01:16 PM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
Here Arjuna yields not out of passion but for the sake of dharma. It is significant that he acts "holding dharma as the cause": not desire but the duty to save one who has taken refuge, and compassion for one who suffers, moves him. And the union entered into for the sake of dharma and rescue is sanctified by its very foundation. Thus the scripture reveals that Arjuna yields out of mercy, not lust; and the marriage with Ulupi (from which Iravan will be born) is grounded in dharma, not in passion.