Shloka 66
Devanagari script
ततो देवा: समागम्य सोममूचुर्महीपते
Transliteration
tato devāḥ samāgamya somam ūcur mahīpate
Translation
Then the gods assembled and addressed Soma, O king—marking a decisive moment where divine counsel enters the narrative and frames the ensuing events within a moral and cosmic order.
Word by Word
ततःthen, thereafter
ततः:
Adhikarana
TypeIndeclinable
Rootततः (तद्-प्रातिपदिकात् अव्यय)
Formअव्यय (indeclinable)
देवाःthe gods
देवाः:
Karta
TypeNoun
Rootदेव
Formपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन
समागम्यhaving assembled/come together
समागम्य:
Karta
TypeVerb
Rootसम् + आ + गम्
Formक्त्वान्त (absolutive/gerund), अव्यय; कर्तरि प्रयोगः
सोमम्Soma (the deity)
सोमम्:
Karma
TypeNoun
Rootसोम
Formपुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन
ऊचुःsaid, spoke
ऊचुः:
TypeVerb
Rootवच्
Formलिट् (परस्मैपद), प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन
महीपतेO king (lord of the earth)
महीपते:
Sampradana
TypeNoun
Rootमहीपति
Formपुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन, एकवचन
Speaker
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Characters & Entities
द
देवाः (the gods)स
सोम (Soma)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
The verse signals that human affairs are not viewed in isolation: divine assemblies and counsel represent the Mahabharata’s ethical frame where actions and outcomes are situated within a wider cosmic and moral order.
A transition occurs: the gods gather together and speak to Soma, while the narrator (Vaiśampāyana) addresses the listener as ‘O king,’ preparing the audience for a divinely contextualized development in the episode.