Shloka 47

चित्रसेन-समागमः / The Engagement with Citrasena and the Gandharvas

Devanagari script

महार्हमाल्याभरणा: सुवर्णश्रिन्दनो क्षिता: । मणीन्‌ हेम च बिश्रत्यो नृत्यगीतविशारदा:,“उनकी मालाएँ तथा आभूषण बहुमूल्य थे, अंगकान्ति बड़ी सुन्दर थी। वे चन्दनमिश्रित जलसे स्नान करती और चन्दनका ही अंगराग लगाती थीं, मणि तथा सुवर्णके गहने पहना करती थीं। नृत्य और गीतकी कलामें उनका कौशल देखने ही योग्य था

Transliteration

vaiśampāyana uvāca |

mahārha-mālyābharaṇāḥ suvarṇa-śrī-candanokṣitāḥ |

maṇīn hema ca bibhratyo nṛtya-gīta-viśāradāḥ ||

Translation

Waiśampāyana berkata: Mereka mengenakan rangkaian bunga dan perhiasan yang amat berharga; tubuh mereka diolesi cendana dan dihiasi kilau emas. Dengan permata dan emas sebagai perhiasan, mereka terampil—bahkan mahir—dalam tari dan nyanyian.

Word by Word

• {'vaiśampāyana uvāca': 'Vaiśampāyana said', 'mahārha': 'highly valuable, precious', 'mālya': 'garland', 'ābharaṇa': 'ornament, jewelry', 'mahārha-mālyābharaṇāḥ': 'those whose garlands and ornaments are precious', 'suvarṇa': 'gold', 'śrī': 'splendor, beauty, prosperity', 'candana': 'sandalwood', 'ukṣita/okṣita': 'sprinkled, anointed', 'suvarṇa-śrī-candanokṣitāḥ': 'anointed/sprinkled with sandalwood and possessing golden splendor', 'maṇi': 'gem, jewel', 'hema': 'gold', 'bibhratī/bibhratyaḥ': 'bearing, wearing', 'nṛtya': 'dance', 'gīta': 'song', 'viśārada': 'skilled, expert', 'nṛtya-gīta-viśāradāḥ': 'experts in dance and song'}

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• garlands (mālya)
• ornaments/jewelry (ābharaṇa)
• gold (suvarṇa, hema)
• sandalwood (candana)
• gems (maṇi)
• dance (nṛtya)
• song (gīta)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse is primarily descriptive rather than didactic: it depicts opulence and artistic refinement (jewels, gold, sandalwood, music and dance). In the Mahābhārata’s broader ethical frame, such imagery often serves as a reminder that external splendor is transient and should be subordinated to dharma and right conduct.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana describes a group of women (implied by feminine forms) characterized by costly garlands and ornaments, sandalwood anointing, and skill in dance and song—setting a scene of courtly luxury and entertainment within the Vana Parva narration.