Shloka 16

द्रोणेन दुर्योधनस्य कवचबन्धनम् — Drona’s Mantra-Bound Armor for Duryodhana

Devanagari script

ततो भूतनिकायास्तां वसुधां दुदुहुस्तदा । तां वनस्पतय: पूर्व समुन्तस्थुर्दूधुक्षव:,तदनन्तर प्राणियोंके समुदायने उस समय वसुधाको दुहना आरम्भ किया। सबसे पहले दूधकी इच्छावाले वनस्पति उठे

Transliteration

tato bhūta-nikāyās tāṁ vasudhāṁ duduhus tadā | tāṁ vanaspatayaḥ pūrvaṁ samutthasthur dūdhukṣavaḥ ||

Translation

Then, at that time, the multitudes of living beings began to milk the Earth. First to rise up—eager to draw her bounty—were the plants and trees. The passage frames the Earth as a moral reservoir of sustenance: when beings approach her with desire and effort, her resources are ‘drawn forth,’ implying both dependence on nature and the ethical responsibility to seek nourishment without violating the order that sustains all.

Word by Word

ततःthen, thereafter

भूतनिकायाःgroups of creatures/beings

ताम्that (her)

वसुधाम्the earth

दुदुहुःmilked

तदाat that time

ताम्that (her)

वनस्पतयःtrees, plants

पूर्वम्first, earlier

समुत्तस्थुःarose, stood up

दूधुक्षवःdesirous of milking

Speaker

नारद उवाच

Characters & Entities

Nārada

vasudhā (Earth)

bhūta-nikāya (multitudes of beings)

vanaspati (plants/trees)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse presents the Earth as a source of sustenance that beings ‘milk’ through rightful effort, highlighting interdependence with nature and implying a dharmic duty to seek resources responsibly rather than exploitatively.

What is happening in the narrative?

Nārada describes a scene where various classes of beings begin drawing nourishment from the Earth; the plants and trees are said to rise first, eager to obtain her yield.