Shloka 14
माधवी-प्रदानम् (Mādhavī Offered to Gālava) — Udyoga Parva 113
एकत: श्यामकर्णानां शुभ्राणां शुद्धजन्मनाम् । अष्टौ शतानि मे देहि हयानां चन्द्रवर्चसाम्,“इनके बार-बार आग्रह करनेपर विश्वामित्रजीको कुछ क्रोध आ गया; अत: इनके पास धनका अभाव है, यह जानते हुए भी उन्होंने इनसे कहा--“लाओ, गुरुदक्षिणा दो। गालव! मुझे अच्छी जातिमें उत्पन्न हुए ऐसे आठ सौ घोड़े दो, जिनकी अंगकान्ति चन्द्रमाके समान उज्ज्वल और कान एक ओरसे श्याम रंगके हों। गालव! यदि तुम मेरी बात मानो तो यही गुरुदक्षिणा ला दो।” तपोधन विश्वामित्रने यह बात कुपित होकर ही कही थी
ekataḥ śyāmakarṇānāṁ śubhrāṇāṁ śuddhajanmanām | aṣṭau śatāni me dehi hayānāṁ candravarcasām ||
“ഒരു വശത്ത് ശ്യാമവർണ്ണ കാതുള്ള, ശുഭ്രമായ, ശുദ്ധജന്മമുള്ള, ചന്ദ്രപ്രഭപോലെയുള്ള കാന്തിയുള്ള എട്ടുനൂറ് കുതിരകളെ എനിക്കു തരിക.”
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how dharma is tested through demanding obligations: a guru’s fee can become a trial of steadfastness and ingenuity. It also cautions that anger can distort guidance, turning a pedagogical demand into a harsh ordeal—yet the student is still expected to respond with disciplined commitment rather than resentment.
Narada reports a demand for a specific and extraordinary gurudakṣiṇā: eight hundred horses of noble stock, moon-bright in luster, marked by a dark ear on one side. In the surrounding episode (as commonly told with Galava and Viśvāmitra), this kind of requirement sets the plot in motion by making the disciple seek rare resources to satisfy the teacher’s command.