Shloka 3

Devanagari script

अजेन यष्टव्यमिति प्राहुर्देवा द्विजोत्तमान्‌ । स च च्छागो>प्यजो ज्ञेयो नान्य: पशुरिति स्थिति:,“अजके द्वारा यज्ञ करना चाहिये--ऐसा विधान है।' ऐसा कहकर देवताओंने वहाँ आये हुए सभी श्रेष्ठ ब्रह्मर्षियोंसे कहा, “यहाँ अजका अर्थ बकरा समझना चाहिये, दूसरा पशु नहीं, ऐसा निश्चय है”

Transliteration

ajena yaṣṭavyam iti prāhur devā dvijottamān | sa ca chāgo 'py ajo jñeyo nānyaḥ paśur iti sthitiḥ ||

Translation

भीष्म म्हणाले—देवांनी श्रेष्ठ द्विजांना सांगितले, “अजाने यज्ञ करावा.” आणि येथे ‘अज’ म्हणजे छाग (बकरा)च समजावा; दुसरा कोणताही पशु अभिप्रेत नाही—असा निश्चय आहे.

Word by Word

अजेनby/with the 'aja' (goat / aja)

यष्टव्यम्is to be sacrificed / should be offered (in sacrifice)

इतिthus (quotative)

प्राहुःthey said / have said

देवाःthe gods

द्विजोत्तमान्the best of the twice-born (brahmins)

सःhe / that (one)

चand

छागःa goat

अपिalso / even

अजः'aja' (goat) / the word 'aja'

ज्ञेयःis to be understood / should be known

नnot

अन्यःother

पशुःanimal (sacrificial victim)

इतिthus (quotative)

स्थितिःthe settled rule / established conclusion

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bhishma (भीष्म)

Devas (देवाः)

Dvijottamas / Brahmin sages (द्विजोत्तमाः)

Aja (अज)

Chāga (छाग, goat)

Paśu (पशु, sacrificial animal)

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 emphasizes authoritative interpretation of ritual injunctions: when scripture says to sacrifice with an ‘aja,’ the established tradition clarifies that ‘aja’ here means a goat, not any other animal—showing how dharma relies on precise, context-bound meanings.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhishma recounts a declaration by the gods to eminent Brahmins: they instruct that a sacrifice should be performed using an ‘aja’ and explicitly settle the intended referent as a goat, excluding other animals.