Shloka 115

Adhyāya 90: Babhruvāhana’s Reception and the Commencement of Yudhiṣṭhira’s Aśvamedha

Devanagari script

सक्तुप्रस्थलवैस्तैरहि तदाहं काड्चनीकृत:

Transliteration

saktuprasthalavaistair ahi tadāhaṃ kāñcanīkṛtaḥ

Translation

ആ സക്തുവിന്റെ കൈപ്പിടികളും ആ അല്പമായ അന്നമാപങ്ങളും കൊണ്ടുതന്നെ ഞാൻ അന്ന് যেন സ്വർണ്ണമാക്കി മാറ്റപ്പെട്ടവനായി—തേജസ്സോടെ, പുണ്യത്താൽ ധന്യനായി മാറി.

Word by Word

सक्तुwith parched grain/flour (saktu)

प्रस्थwith measures of a prastha (a measure)

लवैःwith small portions/particles (lavas)

तैःwith those

अहिO serpent (ahi)

तत्that

अहम्I

काञ्चनीकृतःmade golden; gilded; turned into gold

Speaker

श्षशुर उवाच

Characters & Entities

śvaśura (father-in-law; speaker)

saktu (parched grain)

prastha (measure)

lava (small portion)

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

That the ethical and spiritual value of a gift is not measured by its quantity but by sincerity, need, and right intention; even a meagre offering can ‘make one golden’—i.e., confer inner nobility and merit.

What is happening in the narrative?

The speaker (identified as the śvaśura) reflects on receiving or giving simple food—parched grain in small measured amounts—and describes its effect as a profound transformation, using ‘made golden’ as a metaphor for being blessed and uplifted.