Shloka 3

Devanagari script

गरुड उवाच भगवन्‌ किमवज्ञानाद्‌ वृत्ति: प्रतिहता मम । कामकारवरं दत्त्वा पुनश्नलितवानसि,गरुड बोले--भगवन्‌! आपने अवहेलना करके मेरी जीविकामें क्‍यों बाधा पहुँचायी है? एक बार मुझे इच्छानुसार कार्य करनेका वरदान देकर अब फिर उससे विचलित क्‍यों हुए हैं?

Transliteration

garuḍa uvāca | bhagavan kim avajñānād vṛttiḥ pratihatā mama | kāmakāra-varaṃ dattvā punaś calitavān asi ||

Translation

Garuḍa sprach: „O erhabener, gesegneter Herr, warum hast du — aus Geringschätzung — meinen Lebensunterhalt behindert? Nachdem du mir einst den Segen gabst, nach eigenem Willen zu handeln, weshalb ziehst du ihn nun zurück und kehrst deinen Standpunkt um?“

Word by Word

गरुडःGaruda

उवाचsaid

भगवन्O Lord

किम्why?/what?

अवज्ञानात्from contempt; out of disregard

वृत्तिःlivelihood; means of subsistence

प्रतिहताobstructed; checked

ममmy

कामकारवरम्a boon of acting at will

दत्त्वाhaving given

पुनःagain

चलितवान्have you deviated/moved away

असिyou are

Speaker

गरुड उवाच

Characters & Entities

Garuḍa

Bhagavān (the Lord addressed)

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?

Even when freedom or a boon is granted, it is not necessarily absolute; ethical order (dharma) can impose restraints. The verse highlights the tension between personal license (kāmakāra) and higher regulation, and questions the justice of restricting someone’s established means of living.

What is happening in the narrative?

Garuḍa confronts the Lord he is addressing, complaining that his livelihood has been obstructed as if through contempt. He reminds the Lord that he was previously granted a boon to act as he wished, and asks why that permission is now being curtailed.