Shloka 4

Devanagari script

वन्दनीयाश्व वरदा वयमप्यनुयायिन: । मनुष्याणां विशेषेण नावेक्ष्या इति मे मति:,भाविनि! सुरसाके वंशज नाग महापराक्रमी और अत्यन्त वेगशाली होते हैं। वे देवताओं, असुरों और देवर्षियोंके लिये भी वन्दनीय हैं। हमलोग भी अपने सेवकको वर देनेवाले हैं। विशेषतः मनुष्योंके लिये हमारा दर्शन सुलभ नहीं है, ऐसी मेरी धारणा है

Transliteration

vandaniyāś ca varadā vayam apy anuyāyinaḥ | manuṣyāṇāṁ viśeṣeṇa nāvekṣyā iti me matiḥ ||

Translation

ನಾಗನು ಹೇಳಿದನು—ನಾವೂ ವಂದನೀಯರು, ವರಗಳನ್ನು ನೀಡಲು ಸಮರ್ಥರು, ನಮ್ಮದೇ ಅನುಯಾಯಿಗಳು-ಸೇವಕರು ಇದ್ದಾರೆ. ಆದರೆ ನನ್ನ ಮತದಲ್ಲಿ—ವಿಶೇಷವಾಗಿ ಮಾನವರಿಗೆ—ನಮ್ಮ ದರ್ಶನ ಸುಲಭವಲ್ಲ.

Word by Word

• {'vandaniyāḥ': 'worthy of reverence, to be saluted', 'varadāḥ': 'givers of boons, bestowers of favors', 'vayam': 'we', 'api': 'also, even', 'anuyāyinaḥ': 'followers, attendants, those who accompany', 'manuṣyāṇām': 'of humans, of mankind', 'viśeṣeṇa': 'especially, particularly', 'na': 'not', 'avekṣyāḥ': 'to be seen, visible, obtainable to sight', 'iti': 'thus, so', 'me': 'my', 'matiḥ': 'opinion, judgment, understanding'}

Speaker

नाग उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Nāga (speaker)
• manuṣyāḥ (humans)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Supernatural power and worthiness of reverence do not imply easy accessibility; certain beings (like Nāgas) may grant boons, yet remain generally beyond ordinary human perception.

What is happening in the narrative?

A Nāga speaks about the status of Nāgas as venerable boon-givers with attendants, while emphasizing that humans, in particular, rarely obtain their direct sight or encounter.