Shloka 27

राजपूजाविधानम् / Royal Reception Protocols during Āśvamedha Preparations

Devanagari script

ततो यूपोच्छये प्राप्ते षड्‌ बैल्चान्‌ भरतर्षभ । खादिरान्‌ बिल्वसमितांस्तावत: सर्ववर्णिन:

Transliteration

tato yūpocchaye prāpte ṣaḍ bailcān bharatarṣabha | khādirān bilvasamitāṁs tāvataḥ sarvavarṇinaḥ ||

Translation

Vaiśampāyana said: When the time came to set up the sacrificial posts, O bull among the Bharatas, the officiating priests prepared six posts of bilva-wood and likewise six of khadira-wood—posts of every prescribed type and appearance—so that the rite might proceed in full conformity with rule and tradition.

Word by Word

• ततः: then, thereafter
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः

• यूप-उच्छये: at the raising/setting up of the sacrificial posts
• यूप-उच्छये: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: यूपोच्छय
• Form: Masculine, Locative, Singular

• प्राप्ते: when (it) had arrived / when it came
• प्राप्ते: Adhikarana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: प्राप्त
• Form: Masculine, Locative, Singular

• षट्: six
• Type: Adjective
• Root: षट्
• Form: Any, Accusative, Plural

• बिल्वान्: bilva-wood (posts/trees)
• बिल्वान्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: बिल्व
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• भरत-ऋषभ: O bull among the Bharatas
• Type: Noun
• Root: भरतऋषभ
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• खादिरान्: khadira-wood (posts/trees)
• खादिरान्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: खादिर
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• बिल्व-समितान्: collected/assembled (as) bilva (posts)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: बिल्वसमित
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• तावतः: so many / that many
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तावत्
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• सर्व-वर्णिनः: of all kinds/varieties (lit. all-colored)
• सर्व-वर्णिनः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्ववर्णिन्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• yūpa (sacrificial posts)
• Bharatarṣabha (address to Janamejaya)
• bilva wood
• khadira wood

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The passage emphasizes dharma as meticulous adherence to prescribed ritual order: the sacrifice is not merely an act of power but a disciplined, rule-governed undertaking where correct materials and procedures uphold sacred legitimacy.

What is happening in the narrative?

As the Aśvamedha preparations advance, the priests reach the stage of erecting the yūpas (sacrificial posts) and arrange posts made from specified woods (here bilva and khadira), indicating the formal commencement of key ritual infrastructure.