Shloka 90

Devanagari script

ततः कदाचित्‌ पश्यामि तस्मिन्‌ सलिलसंचये । न्यग्रोधं सुमहान्तं वै विशालं पृथिवीपते,राजन्‌! तदनन्तर एक दिन एकार्णवकी उस अगाध जलराशिमें मैंने एक बहुत विशाल बरगदका वृक्ष देखा

Transliteration

tataḥ kadācit paśyāmi tasmin salilasaṃcaye | nyagrodhaṃ sumahāntaṃ vai viśālaṃ pṛthivīpate, rājan |

Translation

Vaiśaṃpāyana said: “Then, on one occasion, as I looked into that vast gathering of waters, I saw there a very great, broad banyan tree—O lord of the earth, O King.”

Word by Word

ततःthen, thereafter

कदाचित्once, at some time

पश्यामिI see

तस्मिन्in that

सलिल-संचयेin the collection/mass of water

न्यग्रोधम्a banyan tree

सुमहान्तम्very great, very large

वैindeed, surely

विशालम्broad, विशाल, vast

पृथिवीपतेO lord of the earth (king)

राजन्O king

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśaṃpāyana

pṛthivīpati (the King addressed)

nyagrodha (banyan tree)

salilasaṃcaya (vast expanse/collection of waters)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

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 primarily sets a scene of awe and vastness: even amid an immeasurable expanse of water, a single enduring symbol (the banyan) stands out. In Mahābhārata’s narrative style, such imagery often prepares the listener for a significant revelation, reminding a king that power and human affairs are framed within a larger, wondrous cosmos.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśaṃpāyana, speaking to a king, recounts that he once beheld a huge, expansive banyan tree situated within a great accumulation of waters. The line functions as descriptive narration, introducing a striking object seen in an otherwise overwhelming watery expanse.