Shloka 17

अर्जुनस्य प्रतिघातः — श्रुताय्वच्युतायुवधः तथा गजसैन्यविदारणम्

Arjuna’s Counterstroke: Slaying of Śrutāyu and Acyutāyu; Breaking the Elephant Corps

Devanagari script

पुत्रात्‌ पुण्यतरस्तुभ्यं मा पुत्रमनुतप्यथा: । अयज्वानमदाक्षिण्यमश्रि श्वैत्येत्युदाहरत्‌

Transliteration

putrāt puṇyataras tubhyaṃ mā putram anutapyathāḥ | ayajvān amadākṣiṇyam aśriśvaity ety udāharat |

Translation

ನಾರದನು ಹೇಳಿದರು— ನಿನಗೆ ಪುತ್ರನಿಗಿಂತಲೂ ಹೆಚ್ಚು ಪುಣ್ಯಕರವಾದುದು ಇದೆ; ಆದ್ದರಿಂದ ಪುತ್ರನಿಗಾಗಿ ಶೋಕಿಸಬೇಡ. ಯಜ್ಞ ಮಾಡದವನು ಮತ್ತು ದಕ್ಷಿಣೆ ನೀಡದವನು— ಅಂಥವನನ್ನು ‘ಅಯಜ್ವ’ ‘ಅದಕ್ಷಿಣ್ಯ’ ಎಂದು ಉದಾಹರಣೆಯಾಗಿ ಹೇಳುತ್ತಾರೆ।

Word by Word

पुत्रात्than (one's) son / from a son

पुण्यतरःmore meritorious

तुभ्यम्to you

माdo not

पुत्रम्son

अनुतप्यथाःyou should grieve / regret

अयज्वानम्one who does not sacrifice

अदाक्षिण्यम्lack of gifts/fees (to priests); stinginess

अश्रिmisfortune; ill-luck (lit. non-prosperity)

श्वैत्येति"whiteness" (as a quoted term)

इतिthus (quotative)

उदाहरत्he cited/uttered

Speaker

नारद उवाच

Characters & Entities

Nārada

son (putra)

yajña (sacrifice) (implied)

dakṣiṇā (sacrificial fee/gift) (implied)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Nārada redirects grief away from attachment to progeny and toward higher sources of merit: true spiritual welfare is linked to dharmic conduct—especially sacrificial duty and generosity (dakṣiṇā)—rather than merely having a son.

What is happening in the narrative?

Nārada addresses someone lamenting a son and offers counsel: do not mourn, because there is a greater good than a son. He reinforces the point by invoking a traditional characterization of the spiritually deficient person—one who neither performs sacrifice nor gives the due gifts.