Shloka 20
Atithi-prāpti and the Brāhmaṇa’s Deliberation on Triadic Dharma (अतिथिप्राप्तिः धर्मत्रयविचारश्च)
अहं चतुर्थ: शिष्यो वै पञ्चमश्न शुकः स्मृत: । सुमन्तु, जैमिनि, दृढ़तापूर्वक उत्तम व्रतका पालन करनेवाले पैल--इन तीनके सिवा व्यासजीका चौथा शिष्य मैं ही हूँ और पाँचवें शिष्य उनके पुत्र शुकदेव माने गये हैं ।।
ahaṃ caturthaḥ śiṣyo vai pañcamaś ca śukaḥ smṛtaḥ | sumantuḥ jaiminiḥ pailaś ca—ete trayo vinā—vyāsasya caturthaśiṣyo 'ham eva, pañcamaśiṣyaḥ punar asya putraḥ śukadevaḥ manyate || etān samāgatān sarvān pañca śiṣyān damānvitān ||
Vaiśaṃpāyana said: “I am remembered as the fourth disciple, and Śuka as the fifth. Apart from these three—Sumantu, Jaimini, and Paila, steadfast in the observance of the highest vows—I alone am Vyāsa’s fourth disciple, and his son Śukadeva is regarded as the fifth.” He then spoke of all those five disciples, gathered together and endowed with self-control.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse emphasizes the authority of disciplined teacher–student succession: sacred knowledge is preserved through a recognized lineage marked by vows (vrata) and self-restraint (dama), not merely by personal claim.
Vaiśaṃpāyana identifies himself within Vyāsa’s circle of disciples, naming the five principal students—Sumantu, Jaimini, Paila, himself, and Śukadeva—and notes their disciplined character as the basis for reliable transmission.