Shloka 12
कृष्णद्वैपायनं व्यासं विद्धि नारायणं भुवि । को हान्य: पुरुषव्याप्र महाभारतकृद् भवेत्,पुरुषसिंह! तुम कृष्णद्वैपायन व्यासको इस भूतलपर नारायणका ही स्वरूप समझो। भला, भगवानके सिवा दूसरा कौन महाभारतका कर्ता हो सकता है?
kṛṣṇadvaipāyanaṃ vyāsaṃ viddhi nārāyaṇaṃ bhuvi | ko hy anyaḥ puruṣavyāghra mahābhārata-kṛd bhavet, puruṣasiṃha |
Vaiśampāyana dijo: «Reconoce a Kṛṣṇa Dvaipāyana Vyāsa como Nārāyaṇa mismo sobre esta tierra. Pues ¿quién otro, oh tigre entre los hombres, oh león entre los hombres, podría ser el autor del Mahābhārata sino el Señor?»
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse asserts that Vyāsa should be recognized as Nārāyaṇa incarnate on earth, implying that the Mahābhārata carries divine authority and is meant to guide conduct (dharma) rather than serve as mere entertainment or history.
Vaiśampāyana, while narrating, elevates Vyāsa’s status and underscores the epic’s sanctity by declaring that only the Lord could be its true author, addressing the listener with honorific epithets (‘tiger/lion among men’).