Shloka 24

Ādi-parva Adhyāya 3 — Janamejaya’s Rite, Dhaumya’s Parīkṣā, and Uttanka’s Kuṇḍala Quest (सर्पसत्रप्रस्तावना–गुरुपरीक्षा–उत्तङ्कोपाख्यान)

Devanagari script

स तत्र संविवेश केदारखण्डे शयाने च तथा तस्मिंस्तदुदकं तस्थौ,वह क्यारीकी टूटी हुई मेड़की जगह स्वयं ही लेट गया। उसके लेट जानेपर वहाँका बहता हुआ जल रुक गया

Transliteration

sa tatra saṁviveśa kedārakhaṇḍe śayāne ca tathā tasmiṁs tad-udakaṁ tasthau

Translation

Rāma said: “There he lay down in the very breach of the field’s embankment, and as soon as he had lain there, the flowing water at that spot came to a halt.” The episode highlights a practical, self-sacrificing response to protect others’ livelihood—placing one’s own body in service of preventing harm and restoring order.

Word by Word

सःhe

तत्रthere

संविवेशsat down / entered and settled

केदारखण्डेin the section/plot of a field (ridge-breach area)

शयानेwhile lying (down)

चand

तथाthus / likewise

तस्मिन्in that (place/condition)

तत्that

उदकम्water

तस्थौstood still / stopped

Speaker

राम उवाच

Characters & Entities

Rāma

kedāra-khaṇḍa (field-plot)

udaka (water)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Dharma can require immediate, embodied action: preventing harm to others (such as loss of crops and livelihood) may call for personal inconvenience or sacrifice, prioritizing the common good over comfort.

What is happening in the narrative?

A breach in a field’s boundary allows water to flow; the person described lies down right at that spot, and the water’s flow is checked—his body effectively becomes a barrier, stopping the water.