धनंजयवचः श्रुत्वा धर्मराजो युधिष्ठिरः ॥
स्निग्धगम्भीरनादिन्या तं गिरा प्रत्यभाषत ॥
स्वस्ति वाच्यार्हतो विप्रान् प्रयाहि भरतर्षभ ॥
दुर्हृदाम् अप्रहर्षाय सुहृदां नन्दनाय च ॥
विजयस् ते ध्रुवं पार्थ प्रियं कामम् अवाप्नुहि ॥
dhanaṃjayavacaḥ śrutvā dharmarājo yudhiṣṭhiraḥ ||
snigdhagambhīranādinyā taṃ girā pratyabhāṣata ||
svasti vācyārhato viprān prayāhi bharatarṣabha ||
durhṛdām apraharṣāya suhṛdāṃ nandanāya ca ||
vijayas te dhruvaṃ pārtha priyaṃ kāmam avāpnuhi ||
Having heard the words of Dhananjaya, Dharmaraja Yudhishthira answered him with a gentle, deep-sounding voice: "Having pronounced 'svasti' to worthy brahmins, set forth, O bull of the Bharatas — to the sorrow of foes and to the joy of friends."
323323ed393c · published Jul 16, 2026, 3:28:50 PM UTC
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The elder brother releases the younger not with a command but with a farewell blessing, and his first word concerns the blessing of brahmins: let "svasti" be pronounced before setting out. It is notable that a righteous campaign begins not with a reckoning of forces but with a plea for blessing from above. The verse teaches that success is entrusted not to weapons but to grace, invoked by the mouths of the wise; and one who goes forth "for the joy of friends," not out of lust for power, sets out with a pure heart, pleasing to heaven.