Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 49
ततः सुतनुनामा स बालोऽबालोऽभ्युवाच माम् । मम मंदायते वाणी प्रश्नैः स्वल्पैस्तव द्विज । तथापि वच्मि मां यस्मान्निहीनं मन्यते भवान्
tataḥ sutanunāmā sa bālo'bālo'bhyuvāca mām | mama maṃdāyate vāṇī praśnaiḥ svalpaistava dvija | tathāpi vacmi māṃ yasmānnihīnaṃ manyate bhavān
तब सुतनु नामक वह बालक—जो बाल होते हुए भी साधारण बालक न था—मुझसे बोला: “हे द्विज, तुम्हारे छोटे-छोटे प्रश्नों से मेरी वाणी मंद पड़ती है; फिर भी, क्योंकि आप मुझे न्यून मानते हैं, मैं कहूँगा।”
Sutanū
Listener: The brāhmaṇa questioner (first-person narrator of prior verse)
Scene: A radiant boy named Sutanū addresses an elder brāhmaṇa; the boy’s posture is confident yet restrained, suggesting mastery of subtle phonetic doctrine; the brāhmaṇa listens, slightly chastened.
FAQs
Spiritual authority is measured by insight, not age; humility and clarity guide true instruction.
None is mentioned in this verse.
None; it introduces the speaker Sutanū and his response.