Shloka 40

Adhyāya 90: Babhruvāhana’s Reception and the Commencement of Yudhiṣṭhira’s Aśvamedha

Devanagari script

इत्युक्त: प्रतिगृह्याथ सक्तूनां कुडवं द्विज: । भक्षयामास राजेन्द्र न च तुष्टिं जगाम स:,राजेन्द्र! ब्राह्यणके ऐसा कहनेपर अतिथिने एक पाव सत्तू लेकर खा लिया; परंतु उतनेसे वह तृप्त नहीं हुआ

Transliteration

ity uktaḥ pratigṛhyātha saktūnāṃ kuḍavaṃ dvijaḥ | bhakṣayāmāsa rājendra na ca tuṣṭiṃ jagāma saḥ ||

Translation

Ainsi interpellé, le brahmane accepta une mesure, un kuḍava, de saktu. Il en mangea, ô le meilleur des rois, mais même après avoir mangé il ne parvint pas à la satiété.

Word by Word

इतिthus

उक्तःhaving been spoken to / addressed

प्रतिगृह्यhaving accepted

अथthen

सक्तूनाम्of parched flour (sattu)

कुडवम्a kudava (a measure; about a quarter-seer)

द्विजःthe brahmin

भक्षयामासate

राजेन्द्रO lord of kings

नnot

चand

तुष्टिम्satisfaction

जगामattained / reached

सःhe

Speaker

नकुल उवाच

Characters & Entities

Nakula

dvija (brahmin guest)

rājendra (addressed king)

saktu (parched grain/flour)

kuḍava (measure)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights that charity and hospitality must genuinely address need; a token offering may be accepted and even consumed, yet it may not bring true satisfaction—pointing to the ethical importance of adequacy, intention, and real relief rather than mere formality.

What is happening in the narrative?

After being spoken to, a brahmin guest accepts a small measured portion (kuḍava) of saktu and eats it, but remains unsated. The speaker (Nakula) reports this to the king addressed as rājendra, emphasizing the guest’s continued lack of satisfaction.