Shloka 236
नारायणीयमाख्यानम् (Nārāyaṇīyam Ākhyānam) — Nārada’s Return and Hymnic Consolidation
प्रत्यभाषत धर्मात्मा भो शब्देनानुनादयन् । जब पिताने उच्च स्वरसे तीनों लोकोंको गुँजाते हुए पुकारा, तब सर्वव्यापी, सर्वात्मा एवं सर्वतोमुख होकर धर्मात्मा शुकने “भो:” शब्दसे सम्पूर्ण जगतको प्रतिध्वनित करते हुए पिताको उत्तर दिया
pratyabhāṣata dharmātmā bho śabdenānunādayan | yadā pitānena ucca-svarasā trīṁl lokān guñjayitvā pukāra, tadā sarvavyāpī sarvātmā sarvatomukhaḥ dharmātmā śukaḥ “bhoḥ” śabdena samasta-jagat pratidhvanayan pitaram uttaraṁ dadau |
Ketika sang ayah berseru dengan suara lantang seakan menggema di tiga dunia, Śuka yang dharmatma—disebut meliputi segalanya, menjadi Diri bagi semua, dan menghadap ke segala arah—menjawab. Dengan satu seruan “Ho!”, ia memantulkan panggilan itu hingga bergema ke seluruh jagat, membalas suara ayahnya.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights dharmic responsiveness and spiritual maturity: Shuka’s reply is not merely verbal but cosmic in scope, suggesting a realized being whose awareness is universal (sarvavyāpī, sarvātmā). It frames ethical reverence and right relation—answering a rightful call (especially of a father/teacher) with clarity and presence.
A father calls out loudly, making the three worlds seem to reverberate. Shuka, portrayed as universally present and facing all directions, answers with the vocative “bhoḥ,” and his response echoes through the entire universe—signaling his extraordinary spiritual state and the solemnity of the exchange.