Shloka 35

Devanagari script

वृक्षेरावतकायाय सेनान्ये मध्यमाय च । ख्रुवहस्ताय देवाय धन्विने भार्गवाय च,जिनका शरीर वृक्षोंसे आच्छादित है, जो सेनाके अधिपति और शरीरके मध्यवर्ती (अन्तर्यामी) हैं, यजमानरूपसे जो अपने हाथमें ख्रुवा धारण करते हैं, जो दिव्यस्वरूप, धनुर्धर और भृगुवंशी परशुरामस्वरूप हैं, उनको नमस्कार है

Transliteration

vṛkṣair āvatakāyāya senānye madhyamāya ca | khruvahastāya devāya dhanvine bhārgavāya ca ||

Translation

Vyāsa sprach: Verehrung dem, dessen Leib von Bäumen gleichsam verhüllt ist; der das Heer befehligt und zugleich das innewohnende „Mittlere“ ist (der innere Lenker in den Wesen). Verehrung dem, der als Opferherr den Opferlöffel khruvā in der Hand trägt; dem Göttlichen, dem bogenführenden Krieger, dem Bhārgava—offenbar als Paraśurāma.

Word by Word

वृक्षैःby/with trees

आवृतकायायto him whose body is covered

सेनान्येto the commander (of the army)

मध्यमायto the middle one / the one in the middle

चand

ख्रुवहस्तायto him whose hand holds the khruvā (sacrificial ladle)

देवायto the god/divine one

धन्विनेto the bowman/archer

भार्गवायto Bhārgava (descendant of Bhṛgu)

चand

Speaker

व्यास उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vyāsa

Bhārgava (Paraśurāma)

khruvā (sacrificial ladle)

bow (dhanus, implied by dhanvin)

trees (vṛkṣa)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse venerates a figure who unites three domains—nature (tree-covered/hidden form), governance and war (senānī, dhanvin), and sacred duty (khruvā in hand, yajña). It suggests that legitimate martial authority is grounded in inner restraint and sacrificial responsibility, not mere violence.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vyāsa offers a formal salutation (namaskāra) to a divine warrior identified as the Bhārgava Paraśurāma, describing him through layered epithets that connect him to concealment/ascetic imagery, command over armies, inner indwelling presence, and Vedic sacrificial symbolism.