Shloka 3

Adhyāya 348: Nāga–Nīgabhāryā Saṃvāda on Anger, Hope, and Ethical Response

Devanagari script

तावपि ख्याततपसौ नरनारायणावृषी

Transliteration

tāv api khyātatapasaū nara-nārāyaṇāv ṛṣī

Translation

Vaiśampāyana dijo: También estaban aquellos dos sabios—Nara y Nārāyaṇa—célebres por sus austeridades (así debe entenderse en este contexto).

Word by Word

• तौ: those two
• तौ: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Dual

• अपि: also/even
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि

• ख्याततपसौ: renowned for their austerities
• ख्याततपसौ: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ख्याततपस्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Dual

• नरनारायणौ: Nara and Nārāyaṇa
• नरनारायणौ: Karta
• Type: Proper Noun
• Root: नरनारायण
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Dual

• ऋषी: the two sages
• ऋषी: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: ऋषि
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Dual

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• Nara
• Nārāyaṇa

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse foregrounds Nara and Nārāyaṇa as paradigms of tapas (disciplined austerity), implying that ethical authority in dharma-discourse rests on self-mastery, restraint, and spiritual attainment rather than mere power or status.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana, as narrator, introduces or recalls the presence/role of the twin sages Nara and Nārāyaṇa, emphasizing their fame for austerity as a credential for the teaching or episode that follows in this section of Śānti Parva.