Shloka 26
Adhyāya 3: Indra’s Invitation and Yudhiṣṭhira’s Refusal to Abandon the Dog
Svargārohaṇa Test
ततो देवनिकायस्थो नारद: सर्वलोकवित् | उवाचोच्चैस्तदा वाक््यं बृहद्वादी बृहत्तपा:
tato devanikāyastho nāradaḥ sarvalokavit | uvācoccais tadā vākyaṃ bṛhadvādī bṛhattapāḥ ||
Alors Nārada—placé parmi les cohortes des dieux, connaissant les affaires de tous les mondes, éloquent et grand par l’austérité—éleva la voix et parla à haute voix. La scène indique que ce qui suit n’est pas une rumeur, mais une proclamation appuyée sur une connaissance cosmique et une autorité morale.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds the ethical weight of testimony: a statement delivered by a sage who is both all-knowing (sarvalokavit) and disciplined by austerity (bṛhattapāḥ) carries moral authority. It prepares the listener to treat the forthcoming message as aligned with dharma and the wider cosmic order.
Vaiśampāyana reports that Nārada, present among the gods, speaks out loudly. This functions as a narrative cue that an important announcement or judgment is about to be made, witnessed in a divine setting rather than a private human conversation.