Indratīrtha–Ādityatīrtha: Balarāma’s Ritual Bathing, Dāna, and Sacred-Historical Recollections
प्रत्युवाच तत: सा त॑ ब्राह्म॒णं चारुदर्शना
pratyuvāca tataḥ sā taṃ brāhmaṇaṃ cārudarśanā
അപ്പോൾ ആ മനോഹരദർശിനിയായ സ്ത്രീ ആ ബ്രാഹ്മണനോട് മറുപടി പറഞ്ഞു—അവളുടെ വാക്കുകളാൽ സംഭാഷണധാര മുന്നോട്ട് നീങ്ങി.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
The verse functions as a narrative hinge: it foregrounds the ethical weight of speech and response in dharma-discourse, indicating that the woman’s forthcoming reply will carry interpretive and moral significance.
The narrator Vaiśampāyana reports that a fair-looking woman begins her reply to a brāhmaṇa, signaling the continuation of a dialogue or counsel scene within the Shalya Parva episode.