Shloka 16

सर्पसत्रे ऋत्विजः सदस्याश्च — Officiants and Assembly at Janamejaya’s Serpent-Sacrifice

Devanagari script

ततः प्रववृधे गर्भो महातेजा महाप्रभ: । यथा सोमो द्विजश्रेष्ठ शुक्लपक्षोदितों दिवि,द्विजश्रेष्ठ! जैसे शुक्लपक्षमें आकाशमें उदित होनेवाला चन्द्रमा प्रतिदिन बढ़ता है, उसी प्रकार जरत्कारुका वह महातेजस्वी और परम कान्तिमान्‌ गर्भ बढ़ने लगा

Transliteration

tataḥ pravavṛdhe garbho mahātejā mahāprabhaḥ | yathā somo dvijaśreṣṭha śuklapakṣodito divi ||

Translation

Daraufhin begann der Embryo —strahlend von großer geistiger Kraft und glänzend in Herrlichkeit— stetig zu wachsen, wie der Mond, o Bester der Zweimalgeborenen, der, am Himmel in der hellen Monatshälfte aufgegangen, von Tag zu Tag zunimmt. Das Gleichnis betont die glückverheißende, geordnete Entfaltung des Lebens und die Reifung rechter Ziele durch Dharma.

Word by Word

ततःthen, thereafter

प्रववृधेgrew, increased

गर्भःthe embryo, fetus

महातेजाःof great splendor/energy

महाप्रभःof great radiance

यथाas, just as

सोमःthe moon

द्विजश्रेष्ठO best of the twice-born (Brahmin)

शुक्लपक्षोदितःrisen in the bright fortnight

दिविin the sky, in heaven

Speaker

तक्षक उवाच

Characters & Entities

Takṣaka

Soma (the Moon)

dvijaśreṣṭha (addressed brāhmaṇa)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse uses the waxing moon as a dharmic image of orderly, auspicious growth: when conditions are right, life and destiny mature steadily, suggesting that rightful outcomes ripen in due course rather than abruptly.

What is happening in the narrative?

Takṣaka describes the embryo’s development, emphasizing its extraordinary radiance and promise; its growth is compared to the moon increasing day by day in the bright fortnight.