Shloka 96

Nāgendra–Brāhmaṇa Saṃvāda: Praśna-vidhi and Dharmic Approach on the Gomatī Riverbank

Devanagari script

उत्पन्नसंशयो राजा एतदेवमचोदयत्‌ । भगवान्‌ विष्णुके हयग्रीवावतारकी चर्चा सुनकर तुम्हारी ही तरह राजा जनमेजयको भी संदेह हो गया था। तब उन्होंने इस प्रकार प्रश्न किया--

Transliteration

utpanna-sabayo r1j1 etad evam acodayat | bhagav1n viu-ke hayagr
2bv1vat1ra-k
2b carc1 brutv1 tv1m iva r1j1 janamejayo 'pi sabaya pr1pta | tata sa evam apchat || naiv1sya vindanti gati mah1tmana na c1gati kabcid ih1nupabyati | j1n1tmak1 santi hi ye maharaya pabyanti nitya purua gu1dhikam ||

Translation

Śaunaka dit : Lorsque le doute s’éleva dans le roi, il pressa précisément ce point de la manière suivante. Ayant entendu l’exposé sur l’incarnation Hayagrīva du Seigneur Viṣṇu, le roi Janamejaya aussi—comme toi—devint incertain. Alors il demanda : « Nul ici ne peut discerner véritablement la marche de ce Grand-Âme, et nul ne perçoit sa “non-marche” (quelque limite ou cessation). Pourtant, il est de grands ṛṣis dont l’être même est connaissance ; eux contemplent sans cesse la Personne qui transcende les guṇas. »

Word by Word

• {'utpanna-sa\x1b\x15baya\x1e': 'doubt that has arisen', 'r\x101j\x101': 'the king (Janamejaya in context)', 'acodayat': 'urged, pressed with a question', 'bhagav\x101n': 'the Blessed Lord

• a title of divinity', 'vi\x1b\x1bu': 'Viṣṇu', 'hayagr\x012bv\x101vat\x101ra': 'the incarnation as Hayagr\x012bva (horse-headed form)', 'carc\x101': 'discussion, exposition', '\x15brutv\x101': 'having heard', 'sa\x1b\x15baya\x1e': 'doubt, uncertainty', 'ap\x1b\x1bchat': 'asked', 'gati': 'course, movement, destiny

• also ‘attainable state’', 'agati': 'non-going

• ‘no ascertainable end’', 'mah\x101tman': 'great-souled one

• exalted being', 'anupa\x15byati': 'perceives, observes', 'j\x1b\x101n\x101tmaka': 'whose essence is knowledge', 'mahar\x1b\x1bi': 'great seer', 'nityam': 'always, perpetually', 'puru\x1ba': 'the Person

• the supreme Self', 'gu\x1b\x101dhika': 'beyond/superior to the gu\x1bas (sattva, rajas, tamas)'}

Speaker

शौनक उवाच

Characters & Entities

• aaunaka
• Janamejaya
• Viu
• Hayagr
  2bva
• maharis (great seers)
• purua (the Supreme Person)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The Supreme Person’s nature and ‘path’ cannot be grasped by ordinary inference; yet realized seers—whose consciousness is grounded in knowledge—directly apprehend the Lord as transcending the three guas. The verse contrasts common epistemic limits with yogic/gnostic vision.

What is happening in the narrative?

After hearing an account and discussion of Viu’s Hayagr
2bva incarnation, Janamejaya becomes doubtful and presses the speaker with a question about how the Lord’s movement, destiny, or limits can be known, and how sages can nevertheless ‘see’ Him.