न तं विसर्जयामास जरयापि परिप्लुतम् । उत्तंकोऽपि सुशिष्यत्वान्नो वेत्ति पलितं शिरः
na taṃ visarjayāmāsa jarayāpi pariplutam | uttaṃko'pi suśiṣyatvānno vetti palitaṃ śiraḥ
वृद्धावस्था से आक्रान्त होने पर भी उन्होंने उसे विदा नहीं किया; और उत्तंक भी अपने उत्तम शिष्य-धर्म के कारण उसके सिर के श्वेत केश तक न देख सका।
Vasiṣṭha
Scene: Inside a forest hermitage: an aged guru with greying hair, serene and absorbed; Uttaṅka stands attentive, youthful, hands folded, unaware of the guru’s aging; quiet austerity of āśrama life.
True service is steady and self-forgetful, not calculated by time, reward, or changing circumstances.
None directly; this verse is ethical narrative groundwork rather than explicit tīrtha praise.
None; the ‘practice’ implied is continuous guru-sevā.