Shloka 18

Strī-satkāra (On honoring women) — Mahābhārata 13.46

Devanagari script

इदमाख्यातवांश्वापि ममाख्यानं महामुनि: । मार्कण्डेय: पुरा राजन्‌ गड़ाकूले कथान्तरे,राजन! पूर्वकालमें गंगाके तटपर कथा-वार्तके बीचमें ही महामुनि मार्कण्डेयने मुझे यह आख्यान सुनाया था

Transliteration

idam ākhyātavān śvāpi mamākhyānaṃ mahāmuniḥ | mārkaṇḍeyaḥ purā rājan gaṅgākūle kathāntare ||

Translation

Vipula berkata: “Wahai Raja, pada zaman dahulu resi agung Mārkaṇḍeya juga telah menceritakan kepadaku kisah yang sama ini—ketika kami berbual di tebing Sungai Gaṅgā.”

Word by Word

इदम्this (story/episode)

आख्यातवान्having narrated / who narrated

अपिalso / even

ममof me / my

आख्यानम्narrative, tale

महामुनिःthe great sage

मार्कण्डेयःMarkandeya

पुराformerly, long ago

राजन्O king

गङ्गा-कूलेon the bank of the Ganga

कथा-अन्तरेin the midst of a conversation / during a tale

Speaker

विपुल उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vipula

Mārkaṇḍeya

Gaṅgā

King (rājan)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse underscores the ethical authority of teachings received through a trustworthy lineage: Vipula grounds his account in the prior narration of the revered sage Mārkaṇḍeya, implying that dharma is best understood through authenticated transmission and remembered instruction.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vipula identifies the source of the story he is recounting: he previously heard the same narrative from Mārkaṇḍeya on the bank of the Gaṅgā during a conversation, thereby framing the current discourse as a faithfully transmitted tradition.