Shloka 18

कण्वोपदेशः—नश्वरबलविवेकः तथा मातलिगुणकेश्याः आख्यानारम्भः

Kaṇva’s Counsel on Impermanent Power; Opening of the Mātali–Guṇakeśī Narrative

Devanagari script

तौ दृष्टवा क्षुत्पिपासाभ्यां कृशी धमनिसंततौ । शीतवातातपैश्चैव कर्शितौ पुरुषोत्तमौ,वे दोनों पुरुषरत्न भूख-प्याससे दुर्बल हो गये थे। उनके सारे अंगोंमें फैली हुई नस- नाड़ियाँ स्पष्ट दिखायी देती थीं। वे सर्दी-गरमी और हवाका कष्ट सहते-सहते अत्यन्त कृशकाय हो रहे थे

Transliteration

tau dṛṣṭvā kṣutpipāsābhyāṃ kṛśī dhamanisaṃtatau | śītavātātapaiś caiva karśitau puruṣottamau ||

Translation

ಆ ಇಬ್ಬರು ಪುರುಷೋತ್ತಮರನ್ನು ಕಂಡಾಗ (ರಾಜನು ಕಂಡದ್ದು)—ಹಸಿವು-ಬಾಯಾರಿಕೆಯಿಂದ ಅವರು ಕೃಶರಾಗಿದ್ದರು; ದೇಹದಾದ್ಯಂತ ನರಗಳು ಸ್ಪಷ್ಟವಾಗಿ ಕಾಣುತ್ತಿದ್ದು, ಚಳಿ, ಗಾಳಿ ಮತ್ತು ಬಿಸಿಲಿನ ತಾಪದಿಂದ ಇನ್ನಷ್ಟು ಕ್ಷೀಣರಾಗಿದ್ದರು.

Word by Word

तौthose two

दृष्ट्वाhaving seen

क्षुत्by hunger

पिपासाभ्याम्by thirst (and)

कृशीemaciated

धमनि-संततौwith veins/arteries spread out (clearly visible)

शीत-वात-आतपैःby cold, wind, and sun/heat

चand

एवindeed/just

कर्शितौworn down/emaciated

पुरुषोत्तमौthe two best of men

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

two foremost men (puruṣottamau)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the ethical and spiritual value of endurance: even the noblest persons may be reduced by hunger, thirst, and harsh weather, yet their steadfast bearing of hardship becomes a marker of discipline and resolve—often a prelude to testing dharma under pressure.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana describes two eminent men seen in a severely weakened state: hunger and thirst have made them thin, their veins are visibly prominent, and continual exposure to cold, wind, and heat has further worn them down.