Shloka 6

Tapovana-praveśaḥ — The King’s Entry into the Sacred Grove and Vision of the Āśrama

Devanagari script

ताभि: सह समापेतुर्ब्राह्मणा: संशितव्रता: । ऋतावृतौ नरव्यात्र न कामान्नानृती तथा,नररत्न! वे कठोर व्रतधारी ब्राह्मण केवल ऋतुकालमें ही उनके साथ मिलते थे; न तो कामवश और न बिना ऋतुकालके ही

Transliteration

tābhiḥ saha samāpetur brāhmaṇāḥ saṃśitavratāḥ | ṛtāv ṛtau naravyāghra na kāmān nānṛtī tathā ||

Translation

Vaiśampāyana said: Those Brahmins, firm in their austere vows, approached and consorted with those women only at the proper season. O tiger among men, it was neither out of mere lust nor at improper times; thus they upheld restraint and truthfulness in conduct.

Word by Word

ताभिःwith those (women)

सहtogether/with

समापेतुःcame together/consorted

ब्राह्मणाःBrahmins

संशितव्रताःof strict vows

ऋतौin the season (of fertility)

ऋतौin the season

नरव्याघ्रO tiger among men

नnot

कामात्from desire/out of lust

नnor/not

अनृतिःimproper conduct/untruth (as a fault)

तथाthus/likewise

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

brāhmaṇāḥ (Brahmins)

tāḥ (those women, unspecified)

naravyāghra (addressed listener, unspecified)

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights disciplined conduct: even within household life, intimacy is framed as regulated by dharma—restricted to the proper season and not driven by uncontrolled desire, emphasizing self-restraint and truth-aligned behavior.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana describes vow-observant Brahmins associating with the women only at the appropriate time (ṛtukāla), stressing that their union was regulated and not motivated by mere passion or improper conduct.