Shloka 21

Adhyāya 223: Nāradasya Guṇa-kathana

Catalogue of Nārada’s Virtues

Devanagari script

छत्र॑ं तवासीत्‌ सुमहत्‌ सौवर्ण रत्नभूषितम्‌

Transliteration

chatr̥aṁ tavāsīt sumahat sauvarṇa-ratna-bhūṣitam

Translation

Śakra sprach: „Einst hattest du einen sehr großen königlichen Schirm, aus Gold gefertigt und mit Edelsteinen geschmückt.“

Word by Word

• छत्रम्: umbrella, royal parasol
• छत्रम्: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: छत्र
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• तव: of you, your
• तव: Adhikarana
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: त्वद्
• Form: —, Genitive, Singular

• आसीत्: was
• आसीत्: —
• Type: Verb
• Root: अस्
• Form: Imperfect (Lan), 3rd, Singular

• सुमहत्: very great, very large
• सुमहत्: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सुमहत्
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• सौवर्णम्: golden
• सौवर्णम्: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सौवर्ण
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• रत्नभूषितम्: adorned with jewels
• रत्नभूषितम्: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: रत्नभूषित
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

शक्र उवाच

Characters & Entities

• शक्र (Śakra/Indra)
• छत्र (royal parasol/umbrella)
• रत्न (jewels)
• सुवर्ण (gold)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

External emblems of power—like a golden, jewel-adorned royal parasol—signify worldly prestige but are ultimately secondary to dharma; the verse points toward reflecting on the transient nature of status and possessions.

What is happening in the narrative?

Śakra (Indra) addresses someone by recalling a former possession: a magnificent royal parasol made of gold and decorated with jewels, invoking the person’s past royal splendor as part of a broader moral or evaluative discourse.