Shloka 16

Devanagari script

इन्द्रस्य जाम्बूनदपर्वताद्‌ वै शृणोमि घोषं तव देवि गज्ले । गोपायैनं त्वं सुभगे गिरिभ्य: सर्वाजमीढापचितं नरेन्द्रम्‌,देवि गंगे। मैं इन्द्रके सुवर्णमय मेरुपर्वतसे तुम्हाशा कलकलनाद सुन रहा हूँ। सौभाग्यशालिनि! ये राजा युधिष्ठिर अजमीढवंशी क्षत्रियोंक लिये आदरणीय हैं। तुम पर्वतोंसे इनकी रक्षा कराओ

Transliteration

indrasya jāmbūnadaparvatād vai śṛṇomi ghoṣaṃ tava devi gaṅge | gopāyainaṃ tvaṃ subhage giribhyaḥ sarvājamiḍhāpacitaṃ narendram ||

Translation

Lomaśa said: “O Goddess Gaṅgā, from Indra’s golden mountain I hear your rushing roar. O auspicious one, protect this king—Yudhiṣṭhira—honoured by all the descendants of Ajamiḍha. Keep him safe from the perils of these mountains.”

Word by Word

• {'indrasya': 'of Indra', 'jāmbūnada': 'gold

• golden (often ‘refined gold’)', 'parvata': 'mountain', 'jāmbūnadaparvatāt': 'from the golden mountain (i.e., Meru, famed as golden)', 'vai': 'indeed, surely (emphatic particle)', 'śṛṇomi': 'I hear', 'ghoṣam': 'sound, roar, rumbling noise', 'tava': 'your', 'devi': 'O goddess', 'gaṅge': 'O Gaṅgā', 'gopāya': 'protect! guard! (imperative)', 'enam': 'this (him)', 'tvam': 'you', 'subhage': 'O fortunate/auspicious one', 'giribhyaḥ': 'from the mountains

• against the mountains (ablative sense of danger/source)', 'sarva': 'all', 'ājamiḍha': 'Ajamiḍha (ancestral figure of the lunar line)', 'apacita': 'honoured, revered, respected', 'narendram': 'king, lord of men'}

Speaker

लोगश उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Lomaśa
• Gaṅgā
• Indra
• Meru (golden mountain implied by jāmbūnadaparvata)
• Yudhiṣṭhira
• Ajamiḍha (ancestral lineage reference)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights reverence for righteous kingship and the ethical impulse to seek protection not through force but through dharmic invocation—recognizing sacred powers (Gaṅgā) and requesting guardianship for one who is socially and morally honoured.

What is happening in the narrative?

During the forest journey, Lomasha addresses the river-goddess Gaṅgā, describing her thunderous sound heard near Indra’s golden mountain (Meru) and asks her to protect King Yudhiṣṭhira—esteemed among Ajamiḍha’s descendants—from dangers posed by the mountainous terrain.