Shloka 11

Daśagrīva-boonāvaraṇa, Viṣṇv-avatāra-niyoga, Vānara-sahāya-janana, Mantharā-nirmāṇa

Devanagari script

तानवेक्ष्य कृशान्‌ पौत्रान्‌ वने वन्‍्येन जीवत:

Transliteration

tān avekṣya kṛśān pautrān vane vanyenajīvataḥ

Translation

Voyant ses petits-fils amaigris—vivant dans la forêt de nourriture sauvage—Vaiśampāyana dépeint un tableau poignant, qui souligne la rudesse de l’exil et le poids moral porté par la famille dans l’adversité.

Word by Word

• तान्: them
• तान्: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• अवेक्ष्य: having seen
• Type: Verb
• Root: अव-ईक्ष्
• Form: क्त्वा (absolutive/gerund), Parasmaipada (usage), having seen/observed

• कृशान्: emaciated, thin
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कृश
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• पौत्रान्: grandsons
• पौत्रान्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: पौत्र
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• वने: in the forest
• वने: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: वन
• Form: Neuter, Locative, Singular

• वन्येन: with forest-produce; by wild (food)
• वन्येन: Karana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वन्य
• Form: Neuter, Instrumental, Singular

• जीवत: living, subsisting
• Type: Verb
• Root: जीव्
• Form: शतृ (present active participle), Masculine, Accusative, Plural

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• pautrāḥ (grandsons/descendants)
• vana (forest)
• vanya (wild forest food)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights how exile and hardship visibly transform even noble descendants, inviting compassion and reflection on dharma: endurance in adversity and the ethical consequences of actions that drive families into suffering.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana narrates a scene where the grandsons/descendants are seen in the forest, thin from subsisting on wild forest food—an image that emphasizes the severity of their woodland life.