Shloka 8

Devanagari script

श्येन: पतत्रिणामादियर्यज्ञानां हुतमुत्तमम्‌ । सरीसृपाणां सर्वेषां ज्येष्ठ: सर्पो द्विजोत्तमा:

Transliteration

śyenaḥ patatriṇām ādiḥ yajñānāṃ hutam uttamam | sarīsṛpāṇāṃ sarveṣāṃ jyeṣṭhaḥ sarpo dvijottamāḥ ||

Translation

ヴァーユ神は言った。「鳥のうちでは鷹が第一、祭祀のうちでは供物（アーフティ）が最上の捧げもの。あらゆる這うもののうちでは蛇が最年長にして首位である—おお、二度生まれた者のうちの最勝よ。」

Word by Word

श्येनःhawk

पतत्रिणाम्of birds

आदिःthe foremost/first

यज्ञानाम्of sacrifices

हुतम्offered (as oblation)

उत्तमम्the best

सरीसृपाणाम्of reptiles/creeping creatures

सर्वेषाम्of all

ज्येष्ठःthe eldest/foremost

सर्पःsnake

द्विजोत्तमाःbest of the twice-born (brahmins)

Speaker

वायुदेव उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vāyu-deva

śyena (hawk)

yajña (sacrifice)

huta (oblation)

sarpa (serpent)

dvija (twice-born, brāhmaṇa addressee)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse teaches a principle of ordered excellence: within each domain (birds, sacrifices, reptiles) there is a recognized ‘foremost’ exemplar. This reflects a dharmic view of the world as structured by gradations of merit, seniority, and function—used here as a didactic comparison to guide judgment about what is chief or authoritative.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vāyu-deva is speaking to a brāhmaṇa (dvijottama), offering illustrative examples of preeminence—hawk among birds, oblation within sacrifice, serpent among creeping beings—likely to support a broader argument about rank, priority, or rightful authority in the surrounding discourse of the Ashvamedhika Parva.