Shloka 43

देवतापितृप्रश्नः — Nārada at Badarīāśrama: the ultimate referent of daiva and pitṛ worship

Devanagari script

पुरा वृका भयंकरा मनुष्यदेहगोचरा: । अभिद्रवन्ति सर्वतो यतस्व पुण्यशीलने

Transliteration

purā vṛkā bhayaṅkarā manuṣya-deha-gocarāḥ | abhidravanti sarvato yatasva puṇya-śīlane ||

Translation

Vyāsa dijo: «En tiempos antiguos hubo lobos terribles que acechaban los cuerpos humanos; se abalanzaban desde todos los flancos. Por eso esfuérzate con vigilancia, oh tú de conducta virtuosa.»

Word by Word

• पुरा: formerly, once
• पुरा: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पुरा

• वृकाः: wolves
• वृकाः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: वृक
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• भयंकराः: terrifying
• भयंकराः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: भयंकर
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• मनुष्यदेहगोचराः: having human bodies as their range/target (preying on humans)
• मनुष्यदेहगोचराः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: मनुष्यदेहगोचर
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• अभिद्रवन्ति: they rush/charge (towards)
• Type: Verb
• Root: अभि-√द्रु
• Form: Present, Third, Plural, Parasmaipada

• सर्वतः: from all sides
• सर्वतः: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: सर्वतः

• यतस्व: strive, make effort
• Type: Verb
• Root: √यत्
• Form: Imperative, Second, Singular, Atmanepada

• पुण्यशीलने: O virtuous one (of holy conduct)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुण्यशील
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

Speaker

व्यास उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vyāsa
• wolves (vṛkāḥ)
• humans (manuṣya)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Even the virtuous must remain alert and make steady effort; dangers can arise suddenly and from every direction, so dharmic life requires vigilance and disciplined striving.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vyāsa recalls an earlier time when fearsome wolves attacked humans from all sides, using the image as a warning and exhortation to the addressed virtuous person to exert themselves and stay watchful.