Shloka 22

Vṛddha-kanyā-carita and Balarāma’s Kurukṣetra Inquiry (वृद्धकन्या-चरितम् / कुरुक्षेत्रफल-प्रश्नः)

Devanagari script

सारस्वत इति ख्यातो भविष्यति महातपा: । एष द्वादशवार्षिक्यामनावृष्ट्यां द्विजर्षभान्‌

Transliteration

sārasvata iti khyāto bhaviṣyati mahātapāḥ | eṣa dvādaśavārṣikyām anāvṛṣṭyāṃ dvijarṣabhān

Translation

Vaiśampāyana dit : «Ce grand ascète deviendra célèbre sous le nom de “Sārasvata”. Durant la sécheresse de douze ans, il soutiendra les plus éminents des deux-fois-nés (les brāhmaṇa).»

Word by Word

सारस्वतःSārasvata (name/epithet)

इतिthus; as

ख्यातःknown; famed; called

भविष्यतिwill be; will become

महातपाःa great ascetic (one of great austerity)

एषःthis (man)

द्वादशवार्षिक्याम्in the twelve-year (period)

अनावृष्ट्याम्in the drought; in the absence of rain

द्विजर्षभान्the best of the twice-born (brahmins)

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

Sārasvata

Sarasvatī (implied by the epithet)

dvijarṣabhas (foremost brāhmaṇas)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

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 dharma expressed as compassionate responsibility: a truly great ascetic is not only austere but also becomes a support for the learned and vulnerable during crisis, thereby safeguarding sacred knowledge and social order.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana foretells the fame of an ascetic called Sārasvata and indicates that during a severe twelve-year drought he will sustain and protect eminent brāhmaṇas.