Shloka 12

Devanagari script

वैशम्पायन उवाच एवं ब्रुवाणां शार्स्तिे प्रत्यूचुरथ मातरम्‌ | स्नेहमुत्सृज्य मातस्त्वं पत यत्र न हव्यवाट्‌,वैशम्पायनजी कहते हैं--जनमेजय! इस प्रकार बिलखती हुई अपनी मातासे वे शार्ड्गपक्षीके बच्चे बोले--'माँ! तुम स्नेह छोड़कर जहाँ आग न हो, उधर उड़ जाओ

Transliteration

Vaiśampāyana uvāca: evaṃ bruvāṇāṃ śārṅgāḥ pratyūcur atha mātaram | sneham utsṛjya mātas tvaṃ pata yatra na havyavāṭ ||

Translation

Vaiśampāyana sprach: Als ihre Mutter so klagend redete, erwiderten ihr die jungen Śārṅga-Vögel: „Mutter, lege deine Anhänglichkeit ab und fliege fort an einen Ort, wo kein Feuer ist.“

Word by Word

वैशम्पायनःVaiśampāyana

उवाचsaid

एवम्thus

ब्रुवाणाम्speaking (her)

शार्ङ्गष्टिम्Śārṅgaṣṭī (name of the mother-bird)

प्रत्यूचुःreplied

अथthen

मातरम्mother

स्नेहम्affection

उत्सृज्यhaving abandoned

मातःO mother

त्वम्you

पतfly

यत्रwhere

नnot

हव्यवाट्fire (lit. oblation-eater)

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

Janamejaya

mother bird (mātā)

śārṅga-bird chicks (śārṅgāḥ)

fire (havyavāṭ)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

In a moment of danger, the verse highlights the ethical tension between attachment (sneha) and prudent action: one should not let emotional clinging prevent timely, life-preserving decisions.

What is happening in the narrative?

The mother bird is lamenting, and her chicks respond by urging her to abandon attachment to them and fly to a place free from fire, emphasizing escape from imminent peril.