Shloka 22

Devanagari script

असज़्े देवविहितस्तस्मिन्‌ रथवरे ध्वज: । योजनाद्‌ ददृशे श्रीमानिन्द्रायुधसमप्रभ:,उस उत्तम रथपर देवनिर्मित ध्वज फहराता रहता था, जो रथसे अछूता था (रथके साथ उसका लगाव नहीं था, वह बिना आधारके ही उसके ऊपर लहराया करता था)। इन्द्रधनुषके समान प्रकाशमान बहुरंगी एवं शोभाशाली वह ध्वज एक योजन दूरसे ही दीखने लगता था

Transliteration

asaktaḥ devavihitas tasmin rathavare dhvajaḥ | yojanād dadṛśe śrīmān indrāyudhasamaprabhaḥ ||

Translation

ആ ഉത്തമരഥത്തിൽ ദേവനിർമ്മിതമായ ഒരു ധ്വജം നിലകൊണ്ടിരുന്നു; അത് രഥത്തോട് അസക്തമായതുപോലെ, ആധാരമില്ലാതെ തന്നെ തരംഗിക്കുന്നതുപോലെ തോന്നി. ഇന്ദ്രധനുസ്സിനൊത്ത ബഹുവർണ്ണപ്രഭയോടെ ശോഭിച്ച ആ ധ്വജം ഒരു യോജന ദൂരത്തിൽ നിന്നുതന്നെ ദൃശ്യമായിരുന്നു.

Word by Word

• {'asaktaḥ': 'unattached, not clinging

• not fastened', 'devavihitaḥ': 'ordained/made by the gods

• divinely fashioned', 'tasmin': 'on that

• in that (context/location)', 'rathavare': 'on the excellent chariot (ratha-vara)', 'dhvajaḥ': 'banner, standard, flag', 'yojanāt': 'from a yojana (a long distance measure)', 'dadṛśe': 'was seen

• appeared (perfect/passive sense)', 'śrīmān': 'splendid, glorious, auspicious', 'indrāyudha': 'Indra’s weapon

• commonly ‘rainbow’', 'samaprabhaḥ': 'having equal/similar radiance

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• dhvaja (banner/standard)
• ratha (chariot)
• Indra
• indrāyudha (rainbow)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights how symbols of rulership—like a banner—are portrayed as divinely sanctioned and awe-inspiring. Such imagery communicates legitimacy and the moral weight of sovereignty, suggesting that public signs of power are meant to reflect (or claim) alignment with cosmic order.

What is happening in the narrative?

The narrator describes an extraordinary chariot’s banner: it is divinely made, appears unattached while waving, shines like a rainbow, and is visible from a great distance—emphasizing the grandeur and portent surrounding the figure associated with that chariot.