Srimad Bhagavatam — Dvadasha Skandha, Shloka 36

Parīkṣit’s Final Absorption, Takṣaka’s Bite, Janamejaya’s Snake Sacrifice, and the Vedic Sound-Lineage

Devanagari script

श्रीशौनक उवाच पैलादिभिर्व्यासशिष्यैर्वेदाचार्यैर्महात्मभि: । वेदाश्च कथिता व्यस्ता एतत् सौम्याभिधेहि न: ॥ ३६ ॥

Transliteration

śrī-śaunaka uvāca pailādibhir vyāsa-śiṣyair vedācāryair mahātmabhiḥ vedāś ca kathitā vyastā etat saumyābhidhehi naḥ

Translation

Śaunaka Ṛṣi dit : Ô doux Sūta, raconte-nous comment Paila et les autres grands disciples de Vyāsadeva, autorités de la sagesse védique, ont exposé et ordonné les Veda.

Synonyms

• śrī-śaunakaḥ: Śrī Śaunaka
• śrī-śaunakaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śrī (प्रातिपदिक) + śaunaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); कर्मधारय-समासः: ‘श्रीमान् शौनकः’ (honored Śaunaka)

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vac (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect), परस्मैपद (Parasmaipada), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (Singular)

• pailādibhiḥ: by Paila and others
• pailādibhiḥ: Karana (करणम्)
• Type: Noun
• Root: paila (प्रातिपदिक) + ādi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), तृतीया-विभक्ति (Instrumental/3rd), बहुवचन (Plural); तत्पुरुष-समासः: ‘पैलः आदिः येषाम्’ → ‘by Paila and others’

• vyāsa-śiṣyaiḥ: by Vyāsa’s disciples
• vyāsa-śiṣyaiḥ: Karana (करणम्)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vyāsa (प्रातिपदिक) + śiṣya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), तृतीया-विभक्ति (Instrumental/3rd), बहुवचन (Plural); तत्पुरुष-समासः: ‘व्यासस्य शिष्याः’

• veda-ācāryaiḥ: by teachers of the Veda
• veda-ācāryaiḥ: Karana (करणम्)
• Type: Noun
• Root: veda (प्रातिपदिक) + ācārya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), तृतीया-विभक्ति (Instrumental/3rd), बहुवचन (Plural); तत्पुरुष-समासः: ‘वेदानाम् आचार्याः’

• mahātmabhiḥ: by great souls
• mahātmabhiḥ: Karana (करणम्)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahātman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), तृतीया-विभक्ति (Instrumental/3rd), बहुवचन (Plural)

• vedāḥ: the Vedas
• vedāḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: veda (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), बहुवचन (Plural)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्धः)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (Avyaya), समुच्चयार्थक-निपात (conjunction)

• kathitāḥ: were spoken/taught
• kathitāḥ: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kath (धातु) + ta (कृत्-प्रत्यय)
• Form: कृदन्त (Kridanta), भूतकर्मणि-प्रत्ययान्त (past passive participle, क्त), पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (Nominative), बहुवचन (Plural); agrees with ‘vedāḥ’

• vyastāḥ: were arranged/divided
• vyastāḥ: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vi-√as (धातु) + ta (कृत्-प्रत्यय)
• Form: कृदन्त (Kridanta), भूतकर्मणि-प्रत्ययान्त (past passive participle, क्त), पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (Nominative), बहुवचन (Plural); ‘distributed/arranged’

• etat: this (matter)
• etat: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: etad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन (Singular); object of imperative

• saumya: O gentle one
• saumya: Sambodhana (सम्बोधनम्)
• Type: Noun
• Root: saumya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), सम्बोधन-प्रथमा (Vocative), एकवचन (Singular); संबोधन (address)

• abhidhehi: tell; explain
• abhidhehi: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: abhi-√dhā (धातु)
• Form: लोट्-लकार (Imperative), परस्मैपद (Parasmaipada), मध्यमपुरुष (2nd person), एकवचन (Singular); उपसर्गः abhi-

• naḥ: to us
• naḥ: Sampradana (सम्प्रदानम्)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी/चतुर्थी-एकवचनस्य बहुवचनार्थे (enclitic pronoun ‘us/our’), here चतुर्थी-प्रयोग (Dative sense) ‘to us’

Characters & Entities

• Śaunaka
• Paila
• Vyāsa

FAQs

What does the Srimad Bhagavatam say about how the Vedas were divided and taught?

This verse states that Vyāsa’s great disciples—beginning with Paila—systematically arranged and taught the Vedas as authoritative ācāryas, and Śaunaka requests the details of that arrangement.

Why did Śaunaka ask this question, and to whom is he speaking?

Śaunaka, leading the sages at Naimiṣāraṇya, asks the narrator (Sūta Gosvāmī in the dialogue setting) to explain how Vyāsa’s disciples organized the Vedas, emphasizing reliance on recognized Vedic teachers.

How can this teaching be applied in modern spiritual life?

Seek scriptural understanding through authentic lineages and qualified teachers, valuing careful study and faithful transmission rather than self-invented interpretations.