Shloka 9

Mātali’s Proposal for Guṇakeśī and Sumukha’s Audience with Indra

Devanagari script

वासुकिस्तक्षकश्नैव कर्कोटकधनंजयौ । कालियो नहुषश्लैव कम्बलाश्वतरावुभौ

Transliteration

nārada uvāca | vāsukis takṣakaś caiva karkoṭaka-dhanañjayau | kāliyo nahuṣaś caiva kambalāśvatarāv ubhau ||

Translation

നാരദൻ പറഞ്ഞു—“വാസുകിയും തക്ഷകനും, അതുപോലെ കർക്കോടകനും ധനഞ്ജയനും; കാലിയനും നഹുഷനും; കൂടാതെ കംബലനും അശ്വതരനും—ഇവർ കശ്യപവംശജനായ നാഗന്മാരിൽ പ്രമുഖർ.”

Word by Word

• वासुकिः: Vasuki (a serpent king)
• वासुकिः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: वासुकि
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• तक्षकः: Takshaka
• तक्षकः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: तक्षक
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• श्नैव: also/indeed (as given in the text; likely a scribal/orthographic variant)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: श्नैव

• कर्कोटकः: Karkotaka
• कर्कोटकः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: कर्कोटक
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• धनंजयौ: the two named Dhananjaya (or Dhananjaya and another paired name, as dual)
• धनंजयौ: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: धनंजय
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Dual

• कालियः: Kaliya
• कालियः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: कालिय
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• नहुषः: Nahusha
• नहुषः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: नहुष
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• श्लैव: also/indeed (as given in the text; likely a scribal/orthographic variant)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: श्लैव

• कम्बल: Kambala
• कम्बल: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: कम्बल
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• अश्वतरौ: the two Ashvataras / Ashvatara (dual form as given)
• अश्वतरौ: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: अश्वतर
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Dual

• उभौ: both
• उभौ: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: उभ
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Dual

Speaker

नारद उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Nārada
• Vāsuki
• Takṣaka
• Karkoṭaka
• Dhanañjaya (Nāga)
• Kāliya
• Nahuṣa (Nāga)
• Kambala
• Aśvatara
• Kaśyapa

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse reinforces a dharmic worldview in which social and cosmic legitimacy is grounded in recognized lineages; naming eminent Nāgas situates them within Kaśyapa’s sanctioned descent and highlights ordered plurality rather than chaos.

What is happening in the narrative?

Nārada is enumerating prominent Nāga chiefs—Vāsuki, Takṣaka, and others—within a broader catalogue of Kaśyapa’s descendants, a common epic device to map alliances, status, and the scale of the beings involved.