Shloka 26

Arjuna meets the Lokapālas, is tested by Indra, and is led to Amarāvatī for astra-śikṣā

Indraloka-gamana

Devanagari script

स्थानमेतन्महाभाग ध्रुवमक्षयमव्ययम्‌ | ईश्वरस्य सदा होतत्‌ प्रणमात्र युधिष्ठिर,“महाभाग युधिष्ठिर! यह परमेश्वरका नित्य, अविनाशी और अविकारी स्थान है। तुम यहींसे इसको प्रणाम करो

Transliteration

vaiśampāyana uvāca | sthānam etan mahābhāga dhruvam akṣayam avyayam | īśvarasya sadā hy etat praṇamātra yudhiṣṭhira ||

Translation

Vaiśampāyana said: “O noble one, this is a fixed, imperishable, unchanging abode of the Lord. O Yudhiṣṭhira, offer your reverence to Him from this very spot.”

Word by Word

• स्थानम्: place, abode
• स्थानम्: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्थान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• एतत्: this
• एतत्: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: एतद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• महाभाग: O fortunate one
• Type: Noun
• Root: महाभाग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• ध्रुवम्: fixed, certain, steadfast
• ध्रुवम्: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ध्रुव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• अक्षयम्: imperishable
• अक्षयम्: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अक्षय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• अव्ययम्: unchanging, undecaying
• अव्ययम्: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अव्यय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• ईश्वरस्य: of the Lord
• Type: Noun
• Root: ईश्वर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Singular

• सदा: always
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: सदा

• एतत्: this
• एतत्: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: एतद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• प्रणम: bow (down), salute
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र-नम् (धातु)
• Form: Imperative, Second, Singular, Parasmaipada

• अत्र: here
• अत्र: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अत्र

• युधिष्ठिर: O Yudhiṣṭhira
• Type: Noun
• Root: युधिष्ठिर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• Yudhiṣṭhira
• Īśvara (the Lord)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse emphasizes bhakti grounded in dharma: recognizing the Lord as eternal and unchanging, and responding with humility and reverence (praṇāma). It also suggests that certain places are regarded as stable ‘abodes’ of the divine, inviting disciplined devotion rather than casual approach.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana, narrating the events, points out a sacred, enduring ‘place/abode’ associated with the Lord and instructs Yudhiṣṭhira to offer obeisance from that very spot—framing the moment as an act of reverent acknowledgment within the ongoing journey of the Pāṇḍavas in the forest.