Shloka 57

नलस्य बाहुकत्वेन ऋतुपर्णनगरप्रवेशः

Nala as Bāhuka enters Ṛtuparṇa’s city

Devanagari script

कदा सुस्निग्धगम्भीरां जीमूतस्वनसंनिभाम्‌

Transliteration

kadā susnigdhagambhīrāṃ jīmūtasvanasaṃnibhām

Translation

Bṛhadaśva said: “When will I behold that voice—smooth and tender, yet deep and steady—resounding like the rumble of rain-clouds?”

Word by Word

• कदा: when?
• कदा: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: कदा
• Form: Interrogative adverb (time)

• सुस्निग्धगम्भीराम्: very smooth and deep (voiced)
• सुस्निग्धगम्भीराम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सुस्निग्धगम्भीरा
• Form: Feminine, accusative, singular

• जीमूतस्वनसंनिभाम्: resembling the sound of clouds
• जीमूतस्वनसंनिभाम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: जीमूतस्वनसंनिभा
• Form: Feminine, accusative, singular

Speaker

बृहृदश्च उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bṛhadaśva

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the ethical and emotional power of speech: an ideal voice is both gentle (snigdha) and profound (gambhīra), suggesting that true authority is expressed without harshness, and depth need not abandon tenderness.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bṛhadaśva speaks in a reflective, yearning tone, evoking an anticipated or remembered voice described through vivid natural imagery—like the deep rumble of rain-clouds—within an ongoing dialogue in the Vana Parva.