Shloka 36

Devanagari script

यक्ष उवाच यक्षो5हमस्मि भद्रं ते नास्मि पक्षी जलेचर:

Transliteration

yakṣa uvāca | yakṣo’ham asmi bhadraṁ te nāsmi pakṣī jalecaraḥ |

Translation

The Yaksha said: “I am a Yaksha—may good befall you. I am not a bird, nor a creature that moves in the waters.”

Word by Word

• यक्षः: the Yaksha
• यक्षः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: यक्ष
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• उवाच: said
• उवाच: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच्
• Form: Perfect (Liṭ), Third, Singular

• यक्षः: a Yaksha
• यक्षः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: यक्ष
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• अहम्: I
• अहम्: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: अहम्
• Form: —, Nominative, Singular

• अस्मि: am
• अस्मि: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: अस्
• Form: Present (Laṭ), First, Singular

• भद्रम्: good fortune; well-being
• भद्रम्: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: भद्र
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• ते: to you
• ते: Sampradana
• Type: Noun
• Root: युष्मद्
• Form: —, Dative, Singular

• न: not
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न

• अस्मि: am
• अस्मि: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: अस्
• Form: Present (Laṭ), First, Singular

• पक्षी: a bird
• पक्षी: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: पक्षिन्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• जलेचरः: a water-dweller (aquatic creature)
• जलेचरः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: जलेचर
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

यक्ष उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Yaksha

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse establishes truthful self-identification and removes false assumptions. In the broader Yaksha episode, clarity, honesty, and careful discernment are prerequisites for ethical decision-making (dharma) under pressure.

What is happening in the narrative?

A mysterious voice addresses the situation at the lake and reveals its identity: it is a Yaksha, not a bird or an aquatic being. This disclosure sets the stage for the ensuing questioning that tests the protagonist’s wisdom and dharma.