Adi Parva Adhyaya 123 Shloka 63 - Mahabharata | Lao | Vedapath

Vyasa

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Mahabharata — Adi Parva, Shloka 63

Adhyāya 123 — Droṇa’s Pedagogy: Arjuna’s Preeminence, Ekalavya’s Self-Training, and the Bhāsa-Lakṣya Trial

Devanagari script

असिता च सुबाहुश्न सुप्रिया च वपुस्तथा । पुण्डरीका सुगन्धा च सुरसा च प्रमाथिनी

Transliteration

asitā ca subāhuś ca supriyā ca vapus tathā | puṇḍarīkā sugandhā ca surasā ca pramāthinī ||

Translation

ໄວສັມປາຍະນະ ກ່າວວ່າ: «ທີ່ນັ້ນມີ ອະສິຕາ, ສຸບາຫຸ, ສຸປຣິຍາ ແລະ ວະປຸ; ຍັງມີ ປຸນຑະຣີກາ, ສຸຄັນທາ, ສຸຣະສາ ແລະ ປຣະມາຖິນີ»។

Word by Word

असिताAsitā (a woman’s name)

चand

सुबाहुःSubāhu (a woman’s name; lit. 'good-armed')

चand

सुप्रियाSupriyā (a woman’s name; lit. 'very dear')

चand

वपुःVapuḥ (a name; lit. 'body/beauty')

तथाlikewise/also

पुण्डरीकाPuṇḍarīkā (a woman’s name; 'white lotus')

सुगन्धाSugandhā (a woman’s name; 'fragrant')

चand

सुरसाSurasā (a woman’s name; 'very juicy/pleasant')

चand

प्रमाथिनीPramāthinī (a woman’s name; 'crusher/tormentor')

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśaṃpāyana

Asitā

Subāhu

Supriyā

Vapus

Puṇḍarīkā

Sugandhā

Surasā

Pramāthinī

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?

This verse is primarily a narrative catalogue rather than a direct moral injunction; its value lies in preserving traditional names and lineages/associations, a key feature of Itihāsa literature that frames later ethical and dharmic discussions within a remembered sacred history.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśaṃpāyana continues an enumeration, listing several named women (or female figures) as part of a broader description in Adi Parva, Adhyāya 123.