Shloka 87

Devanagari script

पुरा मामूचतुश्चैव रात्रावश्रायमाणकौ । भृशं सुदुःखितौ वृद्धौ बहुश: प्रीतिसंयुती,पहलेकी बात है, मेरे वृद्ध माता-पिताने अत्यन्त दुःखी हो रातमें आँसू बहाते हुए मुझसे बारंबार प्रेमपूर्वक कहा था--

Transliteration

purā mām ūcatuś caiva rātrāv aśrāyamāṇakau | bhṛśaṃ suduḥkhitau vṛddhau bahuśaḥ prītisaṃyutī ||

Translation

ഒരിക്കൽ—എന്റെ വൃദ്ധ മാതാപിതാക്കൾ അത്യന്തം ദുഃഖിതരായി, രാത്രിയിൽ കണ്ണീർ വാർത്ത്, സ്നേഹത്തോടെ വീണ്ടും വീണ്ടും എന്നോടു പറഞ്ഞു—

Word by Word

पुराformerly, once

माम्me

ऊचतुःsaid (they two)

चand

एवindeed, just

रात्रौat night

अश्रायमाणकौshedding tears, weeping

भृशम्exceedingly, greatly

सु-दुःखितौvery sorrowful

वृद्धौaged (the two elders)

बहुशःmany times, repeatedly

प्रीति-संयुतीendowed with affection

Speaker

यम उवाच

Characters & Entities

Yama

Yama's parents (aged mother and father)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse sets an ethical frame: the words of one’s parents, especially when spoken in distress and with affection, carry moral weight and call for a dharmic response grounded in compassion and duty.

What is happening in the narrative?

Yama begins a recollection. He describes a past moment when his elderly parents, grieving and in tears at night, repeatedly addressed him lovingly—introducing the request or instruction that follows in the next verses.