सावित्रयुवाच श्रूयते भगवन् दूतास्तवागच्छन्ति मानवान् । नेतुं किल भवान् कस्मादागतो<सि स्वयं प्रभो,सावित्रीने पूछा--भगवन्! मैंने तो सुना है कि मनुष्योंको ले जानेके लिये आपके दूत आया करते हैं। प्रभो! आप स्वयं यहाँ कैसे चले आये?
sāvitrī uvāca: śrūyate bhagavan dūtās tavāgacchanti mānavān netuṃ kila; bhavān kasmād āgato 'si svayaṃ prabho?
Sāvitrī said: “O Blessed Lord, it is heard that your messengers come to carry human beings away. Why, then, have you yourself come here, O Sovereign?”
यम उवाच
The verse highlights the moral order surrounding death: ordinarily, cosmic law is administered through agents (Yama’s messengers), but exceptional situations draw the direct presence of the divine judge. It frames death not as chaos but as a regulated domain of dharma, inviting inquiry into why an exception occurs.
Sāvitrī addresses Yama and expresses surprise: she has heard that Yama’s attendants usually come to take humans at death, so she asks why Yama himself has appeared. The question sets up Yama’s explanation and the ensuing ethical dialogue central to the Sāvitrī–Satyavān episode.