Shloka 4
Uttanka’s Inquiry and Vāsudeva’s Adhyātma Exposition
Guṇa–Ritual–Immanence Teaching
तस्य प्रयाणे यान्यासन् निमित्तानि महात्मन: । बहुन्यद्भुतरूपाणि तानि मे गदतः शृणु,महामना भगवान्की यात्राके समय जो बहुत-से अद्भुत शकुन प्रकट हुए, उन्हें बताता हूँ, सुनो
tasya prayāṇe yāny āsan nimittāni mahātmanaḥ | bahūny adbhutarūpāṇi tāni me gadataḥ śṛṇu ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “At the time of that great-souled one’s departure, many omens appeared—numerous and wondrous in form. Listen as I recount them to you.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the traditional dharmic idea that significant actions—especially those of a noble leader—are accompanied by meaningful signs (nimittas). Attentive listening and careful narration are presented as the proper way to transmit such ethically charged events.
Vaiśampāyana prepares the listener for a description of extraordinary omens that appeared when a great person set out on a journey, signaling that the upcoming account will interpret events through the lens of auspicious and inauspicious portents.