Shloka 20

महाभिष-गङ्गा-दर्शनं वसूनां शापकथनं च

Mahābhiṣa Encounters Gaṅgā; The Vasus Explain Their Curse

Devanagari script

चतुष्पदा द्विपदा: षट्पदाश्न तथाभूता गर्भभूता भवन्ति । आखूयातमेतन्निखिलेन सर्व भूयस्तु कि पृच्छसि राजसिंह,पुण्य करनेवाले मनुष्य पुण्य-योनियोंमें जाते हैं और पाप करनेवाले मनुष्य पाप-योनिमें जाते हैं। इस प्रकार पापी जीव कीट-पतंग आदि होते हैं। महानुभाव! इन सब विषयोंको विस्तारके साथ कहनेकी इच्छा नहीं होती। नृपश्रेष्ठ) इसी प्रकार जीव गर्भमें आकर चार पैर, छः पैर और दो पैरवाले प्राणियोंके रूपमें उत्पन्न होते हैं। यह सब मैंने पूरा-पूरा बता दिया। अब और क्या पूछना चाहते हो?

Transliteration

catuṣpadā dvipadāḥ ṣaṭpadāś ca tathābhūtā garbhabhūtā bhavanti | ākhyātam etan nikhilena sarvaṃ bhūyas tu kiṃ pṛcchasi rājasimha ||

Translation

Aṣṭaka said: “Thus, embodied in the womb, beings come to birth as four-footed, two-footed, and six-footed creatures. I have explained all this completely and in full. Now, O lion among kings, what more do you wish to ask?”

Word by Word

चतुष्पदाःfour-footed beings

द्विपदाःtwo-footed beings

षट्पदाःsix-footed beings

चand

अश्नalso/likewise (particle; reading uncertain)

तथाthus, in that manner

अभूताःbecame, came to be

गर्भभूताःhaving become embryos; being in the womb

भवन्तिbecome, come to be

आख्यातम्told, declared

एतत्this

निखिलेनcompletely, in full

सर्वम्all (of it)

भूयःagain, further

तुbut, indeed

किम्what?

पृच्छसिyou ask

राजसिंहO lion among kings

Speaker

अष्टक उवाच

Characters & Entities

Aṣṭaka

rājasimha (the king addressed)

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?

Beings take birth in various forms (two-, four-, and six-footed) after entering the womb, implying a karmic cycle of embodiment and rebirth; the speaker presents this as a completed explanation.

What is happening in the narrative?

Aṣṭaka concludes a prior explanation about births and embodied forms and asks the king—addressed honorifically as ‘lion among kings’—what further question he wishes to pose.