Shloka 9

Dyumatsena’s Restoration and Sāvitrī’s Disclosure of Yama’s Boons (आरण्यकपर्व, अध्याय २८२)

Devanagari script

भजस्व मां वरारोहे महाहाभिरणाम्बरा । भव मे सर्वनारीणामुत्तमा वरवर्णिनी,“वरारोहे! मुझे अंगीकार करो और बहुमूल्य वस्त्राभूषणोंसे भूषित हो मेरी सब स्त्रियोंमें श्रेष्ठ तथा सुन्दरी पटरानी बनो

Transliteration

bhajasva māṃ varārohe mahāhābhiraṇāmbarā | bhava me sarvanārīṇām uttamā varavarṇini ||

Translation

マールカンデーヤは言った。「おお、麗しき腰つきの乙女よ、我を汝の選びし主として受け入れよ。華麗な衣と宝飾で身を飾れ。すべての女の中にあって最も勝れた、我が第一の王妃となれ――この上なく美しき者よ。」

Word by Word

भजस्वaccept (me), choose, take refuge in

माम्me

वरारोहेO fair-thighed/beautiful-rider (lady)

महाहाभिरणाम्बराO she whose garments are of great/precious ornaments (richly adorned)

भवbecome

मेof me, my

सर्वनारीणाम्of all women

उत्तमाthe best, foremost

वरवर्णिनीO lovely-complexioned one

Speaker

मार्कण्डेय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Mārkaṇḍeya (speaker)

varārohā (addressed woman; unnamed in this verse)

ambara (garments)

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 highlights the ethical tension between outward allure (wealth, garments, status) and the deeper question of rightful relationship and consent; it frames temptation through promises of rank and luxury, inviting reflection on dharma beyond mere attraction.

What is happening in the narrative?

A male speaker addresses a woman with flattering epithets and urges her to accept him, promising rich adornment and the highest status among women as his chief queen—an explicit proposal meant to persuade through beauty, luxury, and precedence.