Shloka 6

Śārṅgaka-stuti to Agni during the Khāṇḍava Conflagration (शार्ङ्गक-स्तुतिः / अग्नि-स्तुतिः)

Devanagari script

कालस्य महतो राजंस्तस्य वाक्यं स्वयम्भुव: । अनुस्मृत्य जगामाथ पुनरेव पितामहम्‌

Transliteration

Vaiśampāyana uvāca: kālasya mahato rājan tasya vākyam svayambhuvaḥ | anusmṛtya jagāmātha punar eva pitāmaham ||

Translation

Vaiśampāyana dit : Ô roi, après qu’un long temps se fut écoulé, se remémorant les paroles du Créateur Né-de-lui-même (Brahmā), il se rendit de nouveau auprès de Pitāmaha (Brahmā). Le sens est qu’un ordre divin antérieur fut rappelé au moment voulu, et que l’on agit selon lui.

Word by Word

• {'kālasya': 'of time', 'mahataḥ': 'great, long (of duration)', 'rājan': 'O king (vocative address)', 'tasya': 'his/that (referring to the previously mentioned person/statement)', 'vākyam': 'word, statement, instruction', 'svayambhuvaḥ': 'of the Self-born (epithet of Brahmā)', 'anusmṛtya': 'having recollected, remembering', 'jagāma': 'went', 'atha': 'then', 'punar': 'again', 'eva': 'indeed, just', 'pitāmaham': 'the Grandsire (Brahmā)'}

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• Brahmā (Svayambhū, Pitāmaha)
• King (rājan; Janamejaya as addressee in context)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights fidelity to a prior righteous instruction: when the right time comes, one should remember authoritative guidance and act accordingly, rather than ignoring it due to delay or changing circumstances.

What is happening in the narrative?

After a long interval, the speaker reports that the concerned figure recalls Brahmā’s earlier words and goes again to Brahmā (Pitāmaha), marking a return to the creator for consultation or confirmation.