Shloka 17

यज्ञवाटवैभववर्णनम् / Description of the Splendour of the Sacrificial Enclosure

Devanagari script

ततो रेणु: समुद्भूतो विबभौ तस्य वाजिन:

Transliteration

tato reṇuḥ samudbhūto vibabhau tasya vājinaḥ

Translation

Then a cloud of dust rose up and spread forth, stirred by that horse—signaling the onward movement of the rite and the king’s vigilant attention to every omen and detail in the Ashvamedha’s course.

Word by Word

• ततः: then; from thereupon
• ततः: Apadana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (तद्-प्रातिपदिकात् अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya (ablatival adverb: 'from there/then')

• रेणुः: dust
• रेणुः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: रेणु
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• समुद्भूतः: arisen; sprung up
• समुद्भूतः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: समुद्भू (सम्+उद्+√भू) / भूत (क्त)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular (past passive participle used adjectivally)

• विबभौ: shone; appeared splendid
• विबभौ: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: √भा (भा दीप्तौ) with vi-
• Form: Perfect (लिट्), 3rd person, Singular, Parasmaipada

• तस्य: of him/it; his
• तस्य: Sambandha
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Genitive, Singular

• वाजिनः: of the horse (steed)
• वाजिनः: Sambandha
• Type: Noun
• Root: वाजिन्
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Singular

Speaker

युधिष्ठिर उवाच

Characters & Entities

• युधिष्ठिर (Yudhiṣṭhira)
• वाजिन् / वाजी (the sacrificial horse)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Even small signs in a dharmic undertaking—like the dust raised by the sacrificial horse—are treated as meaningful, reflecting the ethic of attentiveness, responsibility, and reverence in royal and ritual action.

What is happening in the narrative?

Yudhiṣṭhira describes a moment in the Ashvamedha context: the horse moves and a visible dust-cloud rises and spreads, marking activity and momentum in the unfolding sacrificial progress.