Shloka 3

Devanagari script

तदेतददभुतं ब्रह्मज्छा्डकाणामनामयम्‌ | कीर्तयस्वाग्निसम्मर्दे कथं ते न विनाशिता:,ब्रह्म! उस भयानक अग्निकाण्डमें उन शाड्र्गकोंका सकुशल बच जाना, यह बड़े आश्चर्यकी बात है। कृपया बताइये, उनका नाश कैसे नहीं हुआ?

Transliteration

tad etad adbhutaṁ brahma śāṇḍakānām anāmayam | kīrtayasva agni-sammarde kathaṁ te na vināśitāḥ ||

Translation

जनमेजय ने कहा—ब्रह्मन्! उस भयानक अग्निकाण्ड में शार्कुकों का सकुशल बच जाना बड़ा अद्भुत है। कृपा करके बताइये, अग्नि के उस प्रचण्ड संमर्द में उनका नाश कैसे नहीं हुआ?

Word by Word

तत्that

एतत्this

अद्भुतम्wonderful, astonishing

ब्रह्मज्छाण्डकाणाम्of the Brahma-born Śāṇḍakas (a group/people)

अनामयम्safe, unharmed, free from illness

कीर्तयस्वtell, relate, proclaim

अग्निसम्मर्देin the conflagration / in the fire-ordeal

कथम्how

तेthey

नnot

विनाशिताःdestroyed

ब्रह्मO Brahman! (O sage/priest!)

Speaker

जनमेजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Janamejaya

Brahman (addressed sage/priest)

Śāṇḍakas

Agni (fire)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights awe at unexpected preservation in calamity and frames an ethical inquiry: when destruction seems inevitable, one should seek the underlying causes—merit, protection, or rightful conduct—through careful narration and reflection.

What is happening in the narrative?

King Janamejaya addresses a Brahman narrator and asks him to explain how the Śāṇḍakas managed to remain safe and unharmed during a terrifying conflagration, requesting a detailed account of their escape from destruction.