Shloka 21

Nṛga-upākhyāna: Brāhmaṇa-sva and the Consequence of Misappropriated Gift-Cattle (कृकलास-रूपे नृगोपाख्यानम्)

Devanagari script

प्रभुर्भवसि तस्मात्त्वं समनुज्ञातुमरहसि । क्योंकि भूस्वामी जिस भूमिपर यज्ञ करनेकी अनुमति नहीं देता, उस भूमिपर यदि यज्ञ किया जाय तो उसका फल नहीं होता। आप सम्पूर्ण चराचर जगतके स्वामी हैं; अतः पृथ्वीपर यज्ञ करनेके लिये हमें आज्ञा दीजिये ।।

Transliteration

bhīṣma uvāca | prabhur bhavasi tasmāt tvaṃ samanujñātum arhasi | brahmovāca | dadāni medinī-bhāgaṃ bhavad-bhyo 'haṃ surarṣabhāḥ ||

Translation

Dijo Bhīṣma: «Tú eres el soberano; por ello debes conceder el permiso. (Pues si el dueño de la tierra no autoriza un sacrificio en su suelo, el sacrificio realizado allí no da fruto.) Ya que eres el señor de todos los seres, móviles e inmóviles, ordénanos realizar el sacrificio sobre la tierra». Brahmā respondió: «Oh el mejor de los dioses, os concedo una porción de la tierra».

Word by Word

• {'prabhuḥ': 'lord, sovereign, master', 'bhavasi': 'you are (2nd person singular, present)', 'tasmāt': 'therefore, for that reason', 'tvam': 'you', 'samanujñātum': 'to give full permission/authorization (infinitive)', 'arhasi': 'you are fit/ought (to do)', 'brahmā uvāca': 'Brahma said', 'dadāni': 'I give, I grant (1st person singular, present)', 'medinī': 'the earth, the ground', 'bhāgaṃ': 'a portion, share, allotment', 'bhavad-bhyaḥ': 'to you (plural, dative: ‘to your lordships/you all’)', 'aham': 'I', 'surarṣabhāḥ': 'O bulls among the gods

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhishma
• Brahma
• Earth (Medini)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Ritual action bears fruit only when performed in accordance with rightful authority and propriety: even a sacrifice requires legitimate permission from the one who has sovereignty over the place. Dharma is not merely the act, but the act done with due sanction and order.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhishma frames a principle about yajña: without the landholder’s consent, the rite is fruitless. Applying this, he addresses the supreme lordship over the earth and requests authorization to perform sacrifice; Brahma responds by granting them an allotted share of the earth, thereby legitimizing the intended rite.