Shloka 16

Brāhmaṇa-pūjā, Haviḥ-dāna, and the Vāsudeva–Pṛthivī Saṃvāda

Chapter 34

Devanagari script

सुव्रता मुनयो ये च ब्राह्मणा: सत्यसंगरा: । वोढारो हव्यकव्यानां तान्‌ नमस्यामि यादव,यदुनन्दन! जो उत्तम व्रतका पालन करनेवाले, मननशील, सत्यप्रतिज्ञ तथा हव्य- कव्यको नियमित-रूपसे चलानेवाले ब्राह्मण हैं उनको मैं मस्तक झुकाता हूँ

Transliteration

su-vratā munayo ye ca brāhmaṇāḥ satya-saṅgarāḥ | voḍhāro havya-kavyānāṃ tān namasyāmi yādava yadu-nandana ||

Translation

Nārada said: “O Yādava, O delight of the Yadus! I bow my head to those brāhmaṇas who are steadfast in excellent vows, contemplative sages, firm in truth and their pledged commitments, and who duly uphold the offerings of havya and kavya (rites for the gods and for the ancestors).”

Word by Word

• सुव्रताः: of good vows / observing excellent vows
• सुव्रताः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सुव्रत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• मुनयः: sages
• मुनयः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: मुनि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• ये: who
• ये: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• ब्राह्मणाः: Brahmins
• ब्राह्मणाः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्राह्मण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• सत्यसंगराः: firm in truth / having truth as their resolve
• सत्यसंगराः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सत्यसंगर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• वोढारः: bearers / performers (carriers)
• वोढारः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: वोढृ (प्रातिपदिक; कृत्-प्रत्ययान्त)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• हव्यकव्यानाम्: of the havya and kavya offerings
• Type: Noun
• Root: हव्यकव्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Genitive, Plural

• तान्: them
• तान्: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• नमस्यामि: I bow to / I salute
• Type: Verb
• Root: नमस् (धातु: नम्)
• Form: Present, 1st, Singular, Parasmaipada

• यादव: O Yādava
• Type: Noun
• Root: यादव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• यदुनन्दन: O delight of the Yadus
• Type: Noun
• Root: यदुनन्दन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

Speaker

नारद उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Narada
• Yadava (Krishna)
• Yadu-nandana (Krishna)
• Brahmanas
• Munis
• Havya offerings
• Kavya offerings

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Reverence is due to those who uphold dharma through disciplined vows, truthfulness, and faithful maintenance of sacred obligations—especially the rites that sustain the divine and ancestral order (havya and kavya).

What is happening in the narrative?

Nārada addresses Kṛṣṇa (as Yādava, Yadu-nandana) and offers praise and salutations to exemplary brāhmaṇas and sages, highlighting their ethical firmness and their role in sustaining ritual duties toward gods and ancestors.