Shloka 16
Cāturhotra as Inner Sacrifice (Yoga-Yajña) and Nārāyaṇa Recitation
ऋषचश्नाप्यत्र शंसन्ति नारायणविदो जना: । नारायणाय देवाय यदविन्दन् पशून् पुरा
ṛṣayaś cāpy atra śaṃsanti nārāyaṇavido janāḥ | nārāyaṇāya devāya yad avindan paśūn purā ||
ಇಲ್ಲಿ ನಾರಾಯಣನನ್ನು ತಿಳಿದವರು ಋಚೆಗಳ ಪ್ರಮಾಣವನ್ನೂ ಉಲ್ಲೇಖಿಸುತ್ತಾರೆ—ಪುರಾತನ ಕಾಲದಲ್ಲಿ ದೇವ ನಾರಾಯಣನ ಪ್ರಾಪ್ತಿಗಾಗಿ ಭಕ್ತರು ಇಂದ್ರಿಯರೂಪವಾದ ‘ಪಶುಗಳನ್ನು’ ನಿಯಂತ್ರಿಸಿ ತಮ್ಮ ಅಧೀನಕ್ಕೆ ತಂದರು.
ब्राह्मण उवाच
Educational Q&A
Devotion to Nārāyaṇa is validated through disciplined mastery of the senses; the ‘animals’ to be subdued are the sense-forces that otherwise drag the mind outward. The verse appeals to ṛṣi-authority to present self-restraint as a form of inner sacrifice directed to God.
A brāhmaṇa speaker supports a teaching about yoga-like sacrifice by citing what the seers and Nārāyaṇa-knowers say: in ancient times devotees, seeking Nārāyaṇa, ‘obtained/subdued the paśus’—understood as bringing the senses under control as part of spiritual practice.