Shloka 3

Devanagari script

तत्र धर्मपरो भूत्वा त्रित: स सुमहातपा: । कूपे च वसता तेन सोम: पीतो महात्मना

Transliteration

tatra dharmaparo bhūtvā tritaḥ sa sumahātapāḥ | kūpe ca vasatā tena somaḥ pīto mahātmanā ||

Translation

Allí, firme en el dharma, Trita—de austeridad inmensa—mientras moraba en un pozo, bebió el Soma, aquel gran espíritu.

Word by Word

तत्रthere

धर्मपरःdevoted to dharma

भूत्वाhaving become

त्रितःTrita (proper name)

सःhe

सुमहातपाःof very great austerity

कूपेin a well

चand

वसताby (him) dwelling / while dwelling

तेनby him

सोमःSoma (the deity/nectar)

पीतःwas drunk

महात्मनाby the great-souled one

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśaṃpāyana

Trita

Soma

kūpa (well)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Dharma and spiritual discipline (tapas) are shown as inward commitments: even when confined in a well, the great-souled Trita remains devoted to righteousness and attains the sacred Soma, implying that ethical steadfastness is not defeated by external hardship.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśaṃpāyana recounts that Trita, renowned for severe austerities, lived in a well and, while there, drank Soma—indicating a remembered episode where a sage’s endurance and ritual/spiritual attainment persist despite adverse conditions.