Valmiki Ramayana 1.40.22 — Bala Kanda, Sarga 40, Shloka 22

सगरपुत्राणां रसातलगमनम्

The Descent of Sagara’s Sons and the Wrath of Kapila

Devanagari script

समालभ्य तत स्सर्वे कृत्वा चैनं प्रदक्षिणम्।।।।षष्टि: पुत्रसहस्राणि बिभिदुर्वसुधातलम्।

Transliteration

samālabhya tataḥ sarve kṛtvā cainaṃ pradakṣiṇam |

ṣaṣṭiḥ putra-sahasrāṇi bibhidur vasudhātalam ||

Translation

Dann berührten sie alle — die sechzigtausend Söhne — ihn und umschritten ihn rechtsherum; darauf durchbrachen sie die Erdoberfläche und drangen weiter vor.

Word by Word

• samālabhya: having touched/laid hold of
• samālabhya: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषणम्)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sam-ā-labh (धातु)
• Form: Absolutive/Gerund (क्त्वान्त/ल्यप्), from √labh with upasargas सम्+आ; indeclinable verbal form

• tataḥ: then/thereafter
• tataḥ: Kāla/Anantarya (काल/अनन्तर्य)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Avyaya (अव्यय), adverb of sequence

• sarve: all (of them)
• sarve: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (प्रथमा) Plural (बहुवचन)

• kṛtvā: having done/made
• kṛtvā: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषणम्)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kṛ (धातु)
• Form: Absolutive/Gerund (क्त्वान्त), from √kṛ; indeclinable verbal form

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya (अव्यय), conjunction (समुच्चय)

• enam: this one/him
• enam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Pronoun (सर्वनाम), Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Accusative (द्वितीया) Singular (एकवचन)

• pradakṣiṇam: circumambulation (keeping to the right)
• pradakṣiṇam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pradakṣiṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Accusative (द्वितीया) Singular (एकवचन); used with √kṛ in sense of ‘perform’

• ṣaṣṭiḥ: sixty
• ṣaṣṭiḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषणम्)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ṣaṣṭi (संख्याप्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Nominative (प्रथमा) Singular (एकवचन); numeral used with following noun

• putra-sahasrāṇi: thousands of sons (i.e., sixty thousand sons)
• putra-sahasrāṇi: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: putra (प्रातिपदिक) + sahasra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa (तत्पुरुष) compound: ‘sons-thousands’ = ‘thousands of sons’; Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Nominative (प्रथमा) Plural (बहुवचन)

• bibhiduḥ: they split/pierced
• bibhiduḥ: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: bhid (धातु)
• Form: Perfect (लिट्), Parasmaipada (परस्मैपद), 3rd person (प्रथमपुरुष) Plural (बहुवचन)

• vasudhātalam: the surface of the earth
• vasudhātalam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vasudhā (प्रातिपदिक) + tala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa (तत्पुरुष) compound; Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Accusative (द्वितीया) Singular (एकवचन)

Context

Then all sixty thousand sons having touched the elephant and circumambulated it, penetrated the earth.

Characters & Entities

• earth (vasudhā)

FAQs

What is the core ethical principle (Dharma) in this verse?

Dharma is enacted through respectful engagement: touch and circumambulation signify acknowledgment of sacred guardianship before undertaking forceful action (digging).

What is the narrative situation?

After encountering the northern guardian elephant, Sagara’s sons ritually honor him and continue their penetration of the earth.

Which character virtue is emphasized?

Reverence joined to resolve: they proceed firmly, but not without the courtesies that tradition associates with righteous conduct.