Shloka 22

भूमिभार-निवारणप्रसङ्गः (Bhūmibhāra-nivāraṇa-prasaṅgaḥ) — The Motif of Relieving Earth’s Burden

Devanagari script

तैश्वाप्युक्तो भागिनेय: प्रसन्नै- रेतत्‌ सत्यं काममेवं वरं ते । प्रीत्या युक्ता: कामितं सर्वशस्ते कर्तरि: सम प्रवणा भागिनेय,यह सुनकर सभी सर्प बहुत प्रसन्न हुए और अपने भानजेसे बोले--'प्रिय वत्स! तुम्हारी यह कामना पूर्ण हो। भगिनीपुत्र! हम बड़े प्रेम और नम्रतासे युक्त होकर सर्वथा तुम्हारे इस मनोरथको पूर्ण करते रहेंगे

Transliteration

taiś cāpy ukto bhāgineyaḥ prasannair etat satyaṃ kāmam evaṃ varaṃ te | prītyā yuktāḥ kāmitaṃ sarvaśas te kartariḥ sama-pravaṇā bhāgineya ||

Translation

Thus addressed by the delighted serpents, the sister’s son (Āstīka) replied: “So be it—this is true. Let this be the boon you grant.” Bound by affection and humility, they pledged that in every way they would fulfill his desired request, remaining equally inclined and well-disposed toward him.

Word by Word

• {'taiḥ': 'by them (instrumental plural)', 'api': 'also, indeed', 'uktaḥ': 'addressed, spoken to', 'bhāgineyaḥ': 'sister’s son

• nephew (especially maternal nephew)', 'prasannaiḥ': 'by those who are pleased, delighted', 'etat': 'this', 'satyam': 'true

• assuredly', 'kāmam': 'as you wish

• according to desire', 'evam': 'thus, in this manner', 'varam': 'boon, gift (granted as a favor)', 'te': 'to you/your', 'prītyā': 'with affection, out of love', 'yuktāḥ': 'endowed with, joined with', 'kāmitam': 'desired (thing), wished-for request', 'sarvaśaḥ': 'in every way, entirely', 'kartariḥ': 'in the doer/agent

• toward the one who acts (here: toward you as the petitioner/agent of the request)', 'sama-pravaṇāḥ': 'equally inclined

Speaker

आस्तीक उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Āstīka
• Sarpa (the serpents)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Affection and humility can transform hostility into protection: when approached with truthfulness and respectful intent, even those in fear or conflict may commit themselves to a righteous promise (vara) and uphold it fully.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Astika episode connected with the serpent crisis, the serpents—pleased and reassured—address Astika as their sister’s son and agree to grant his request as a boon, promising to fulfill his wish in every way.