Shloka 17

Devanagari script

वैशम्पायन उवाच भूगो: शापाद्‌ भृशं भीतो जातवेदा: प्रतापवान्‌

Transliteration

vaiśampāyana uvāca | bhūgoḥ śāpād bhṛśaṃ bhīto jātavedāḥ pratāpavān |

Translation

Vaiśampāyana dit : À cause de la malédiction de Bhṛgu, le puissant Jātavedas (Agni), saisi d’une peur extrême, se trouva contraint d’agir en conséquence.

Word by Word

• वैशम्पायनः: Vaiśampāyana
• वैशम्पायनः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: वैशम्पायन
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• उवाच: said
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच्
• Form: Perfect, Third, Singular, Parasmaipada

• भूगोः: of Bhṛgu
• Type: Noun
• Root: भृगु
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Singular

• शापात्: from (because of) the curse
• शापात्: Apadana
• Type: Noun
• Root: शाप
• Form: Masculine, Ablative, Singular

• भृशम्: greatly, exceedingly
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: भृशम्

• भीतः: afraid
• Type: Adjective
• Root: भीत
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• जातवेदाः: Jātavedas (Agni, the fire-god)
• जातवेदाः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: जातवेदस्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• प्रतापवान्: mighty, radiant, powerful
• Type: Adjective
• Root: प्रतापवत्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• Bhṛgu
• Jātavedas (Agni)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse emphasizes that moral-spiritual authority (tapas and satya embodied in a sage’s word) can bind even great powers; ethical causality operates through speech-acts like blessings and curses, reinforcing accountability within dharma.

What is happening in the narrative?

The narrator states that Agni (Jātavedas), though powerful, becomes greatly afraid due to Bhṛgu’s curse—indicating a turning point where a divine force is compelled or restrained by the consequence of that curse.