Shloka 47

Svargārohaṇa-parva Adhyāya 5 — Karmaphala-Nirdeśa and Phalāśruti (कर्मफलनिर्देशः फलश्रुतिश्च)

Devanagari script

श्रूयतां सिंहनादो5यमृषेस्तस्य महात्मन: । अष्टादशपुराणानां कर्तुर्वेदमहोदधे:,अठारह पुराणोंके निर्माता और वेदविद्याके महासागर महात्मा व्यास मुनिका यह सिंहनाद सुनो। वे कहते हैं--“अठारह पुराण, सम्पूर्ण धर्मशास्त्र और छहों अंगोंसहित चारों वेद एक ओर तथा केवल महाभारत दूसरी ओर, यह अकेला ही उन सबके बराबर है!

Transliteration

śrūyatāṃ siṃhanādo ’yam ṛṣes tasya mahātmanaḥ | aṣṭādaśapurāṇānāṃ kartur vedamahodadheḥ ||

Translation

Vaiśaṃpāyana said: “Hear this lion-like proclamation of that great-souled sage—Vyāsa—who composed the eighteen Purāṇas and is an ocean of Vedic knowledge.” (By this proclamation, the tradition underscores Vyāsa’s authoritative claim that the Mahābhārata, by itself, stands equal in weight to the Purāṇas, the Dharmaśāstras, and the four Vedas with their six auxiliaries.)

Word by Word

श्रूयताम्let it be heard / please listen

सिंहनादःlion-roar (a loud proclamation)

अयम्this

ऋषेःof the sage

तस्यof that

महात्मनःof the great-souled one

अष्टादशपुराणानाम्of the eighteen Puranas

कर्तुःof the author/maker

वेदमहोदधेःof the great ocean of the Veda (i.e., vast in Vedic knowledge)

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśaṃpāyana

Vyāsa

Aṣṭādaśa Purāṇas (the eighteen Purāṇas)

Veda (as sacred knowledge)

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 establishes Vyāsa’s scriptural authority and frames the Mahābhārata as a comprehensive dharma-text—so weighty that tradition treats it as equal in value to major bodies of sacred literature (Purāṇas, Dharmaśāstras, and the Vedas with auxiliaries).

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśaṃpāyana introduces a solemn, emphatic proclamation (“lion-roar”) attributed to Vyāsa, preparing the listener for a statement about the stature and sufficiency of the Mahābhārata within the sacred tradition.