Shloka 18
Adhyāya 223: Nāradasya Guṇa-kathana
Catalogue of Nārada’s Virtues
Devanagari script
यदा53तिष्ठ: समुद्रस्य पूर्वकूले विलेलिहन्
Transliteration
yadā tiṣṭhaḥ samudrasya pūrva-kūle vilelihan
Translation
നീ സമുദ്രത്തിന്റെ കിഴക്കൻ തീരത്ത് നിന്നുകൊണ്ട് വീണ്ടും വീണ്ടും (അതിന്റ ജലം) നക്കിക്കൊണ്ടിരുന്നപ്പോൾ…
Word by Word
यदाwhen
यदा:
TypeIndeclinable
Rootयदा
Formtemporal adverb
अतिष्ठःyou stood
अतिष्ठः:
Karta
TypeVerb
Rootस्था (तिष्ठ)
FormImperfect (लङ्), 2nd person singular, Parasmaipada
समुद्रस्यof the ocean
समुद्रस्य:
Adhikarana
TypeNoun
Rootसमुद्र
FormMasculine, Genitive, Singular
पूर्वकूलेon the eastern shore
पूर्वकूले:
Adhikarana
TypeNoun
Rootपूर्वकूल
FormNeuter, Locative, Singular
विलेलिहन्licking / lapping
विलेलिहन्:
Karta
TypeVerb
Rootलिह्
FormPresent active participle (शतृ), Masculine, Nominative, Singular
Speaker
शक्र उवाच
Characters & Entities
Ś
Śakra (Indra)S
samudra (ocean)P
pūrva-kūla (eastern shore)Character Dynamics
Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)
Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)
Philosophical Teaching
Political Layer
Geographic Context
Meter (Chandas)
Sandhi Notes
Educational Q&A
The imagery of “licking the ocean” points to the futility of trying to satisfy boundless craving through repeated indulgence; it implicitly commends restraint and discernment as ethical strengths.
Indra (Śakra) addresses someone by recalling a striking past scene—standing on the ocean’s eastern shore and repeatedly lapping at it—setting up a moral or explanatory point about that behavior and its implications.