Shloka 46

Adhyaya 1 — Jaimini’s Questions on the Mahabharata and the Origin of the Wise Birds

Sanskrit

स पुंस्कोकिलमाधुर्या यत्रास्ते स महामुनिः ।

क्रोशमात्रं स्थितातस्मादगायत वराप्सराः ॥

Transliteration

sa puṁskokila-mādhuryā yatrāste sa mahāmuniḥ |

krośa-mātraṁ sthitā tasmād agāyata varāpsarāḥ ||

Translation

അവിടെ, ആ മഹർഷി ആൺകുയിലിന്റെ പാട്ടിനോടു തുല്യമായ മാധുര്യത്തിനിടയിൽ വസിച്ചിരുന്നിടത്ത്, ശ്രേഷ്ഠ അപ്സരസ്സുകൾ ഒരു ക്രോശമാത്രം അകലെയായി നിന്നുകൊണ്ട് പാടിത്തുടങ്ങി।

Word by Word

• saḥ: he
• saḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular

• puṃs-kokila-mādhuryā: by the sweetness of a male cuckoo (song)
• puṃs-kokila-mādhuryā: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: puṃs (प्रातिपदिक ‘male’) + kokila (प्रातिपदिक) + mādhurya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Singular; Tatpuruṣa: ‘by the sweetness of a male cuckoo’ (पुंस्कोकिलस्य माधुर्येण)

• yatra: where
• yatra: Deśa-adhikaraṇa (देशाधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yatra (अव्यय)
• Form: Relative adverb (सम्बन्ध-अव्यय), locative sense ‘where’

• āste: sits/dwells
• āste: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √ās (धातु)
• Form: Present (लट्), 3rd person, Singular, Ātmanepada

• saḥ: he
• saḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• mahā-muniḥ: the great sage
• mahā-muniḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + muni (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular; Karmadhāraya: ‘great sage’

• krośa-mātram: a krośa’s distance
• krośa-mātram: Deśa-parimāṇa (देशपरिमाण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: krośa (प्रातिपदिक) + mātra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular; measure-expression ‘a krośa in extent’

• sthitā: having stood
• sthitā: Karta (कर्ता) (agreeing with varāpsarāḥ in sense; singular used as collective/one of them)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √sthā (धातु)
• Form: Past participle (क्त), Feminine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular; used adjectivally ‘standing/remaining’

• tasmāt: from there/from him
• tasmāt: Apādāna (अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Ablative (5th/पञ्चमी), Singular

• agāyata: sang
• agāyata: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √gai (धातु)
• Form: Imperfect (लङ्), 3rd person, Singular, Ātmanepada (middle)

• varāpsarāḥ: the excellent apsarases
• varāpsarāḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vara (प्रातिपदिक) + apsaras (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Plural (बहुवचन); Karmadhāraya: ‘excellent apsarases’

Speakers

• Narrative voice (Purāṇic narrator describing the setting; no direct dialogue in this verse)

Verse Rasa

{ "primaryRasa": "adbhuta", "secondaryRasa": "shringara", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }

Key Themes

• Frame narrative
• Āśrama-mahātmyam (glory/atmosphere of the hermitage)
• Aesthetic sanctity (śānta-rasa, sacred ambience)
• Nature imagery in Purāṇas

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

The verse underscores the magnetic sanctity (tejas) of a true sage’s presence: even celestial beings are drawn into harmony around him. Ethically, it implies that inner discipline and tapas manifest outwardly as peace, beauty, and order in one’s environment.

How does this fit the Pancalakshana (5 characteristics)?

This is part of the introductory narrative frame rather than a direct pañcalakṣaṇa unit. It functions as upodghāta (preface/scene-setting) that prepares for later sections where sarga (creation), manvantara (ages of Manus), and vaṁśa (genealogies) are treated.

What is the esoteric significance?

The ‘male cuckoo-like sweetness’ and the Apsarases singing at a measured distance suggest controlled allure: beauty and pleasure (kāma) remain present yet regulated in proximity to realized wisdom. Symbolically, refined sensory experience becomes an offering to dharma when it orbits, rather than governs, consciousness.