Shloka 4

Mārkaṇḍeya’s Consolation to the King: Exempla of Rāma and the Efficacy of Allies (मार्कण्डेयाश्वासनम्)

Devanagari script

ता: सदा तं महात्मानं संतोषयितुमुद्यता: । ऋषिं भरतशार्दूल नृत्यगीतविशारदा:,भरतमश्रेष्ठ! वे तीनों ही नाचने और गानेकी कलामें निपुण थीं तथा सदा ही उन महात्मा महर्षिको संतुष्ट रखनेके लिये सचेष्ट रहती थीं ॥॥|॥॥॥/ / ५५५५ ॥॥॥॥॥॥॥५/७ ३३७॥

Transliteration

tāḥ sadā taṃ mahātmānaṃ santoṣayitum udyatāḥ | ṛṣiṃ bharataśārdūla nṛtyagītaviśāradāḥ ||

Translation

Markandeya said: Those women, ever intent on pleasing that great-souled sage, were continually engaged in satisfying him. O tiger among the Bharatas, they were highly skilled in dance and song, and they strove always to keep the rishi content—an image of disciplined service offered to spiritual excellence rather than to mere pleasure.

Word by Word

• ताः: they (those women)
• ताः: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Plural

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

• तम्: him
• तम्: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• महात्मानम्: the great-souled one
• महात्मानम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: महात्मन्
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• संतोषयितुम्: to please / to satisfy
• Type: Verb
• Root: संतोषय् (संतोषयति)
• Form: Tumun (infinitive), Parasmaipada (causative usage)

• उद्यताः: intent / ready / striving
• उद्यताः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: उद्यत
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Plural

• ऋषिम्: the sage
• ऋषिम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: ऋषि
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• भरतशार्दूल: O tiger among the Bharatas
• Type: Noun
• Root: भरतशार्दूल
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• नृत्यगीतविशारदाः: skilled in dance and song
• नृत्यगीतविशारदाः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: नृत्यगीतविशारद
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Plural

Speaker

मार्कण्डेय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• मार्कण्डेय (Mārkaṇḍeya)
• ऋषि (the sage, unnamed in this verse)
• भरतशार्दूल (address to the listener, likely Yudhiṣṭhira in context)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights disciplined, respectful service (sevā) directed toward a spiritually eminent person: skill and art (dance and song) become ethically meaningful when used with restraint and the intention to support dharma and the well-being of the worthy.

What is happening in the narrative?

Markandeya describes three women who are proficient in dance and song and who continually strive to keep a great sage pleased, indicating their ongoing attendance and efforts to satisfy him.