Shloka 34

Adhyāya 33: Antarvedī-Samāgama, Arghya-Nirṇaya, and Śiśupāla’s Objection

Devanagari script

स्वयं ब्रह्मत्वमकरोत्‌ तस्य सत्यवतीसुतः । धनंजयानामृषभ: सुसामा सामगो5भवत्‌,स्वयं सत्यवतीनन्दन व्यासने उस यज्ञमें ब्रह्माका काम सँभाला। धनंजयगोत्रीय ब्राह्मणोंमें श्रेष्ठ सुसामा सामगान करनेवाले हुए

Transliteration

svayaṁ brahmatvam akarot tasya satyavatīsutaḥ | dhanañjayānām ṛṣabhaḥ susāmā sāmago 'bhavat ||

Translation

Vaiśampāyana berkata: Putera Satyavatī (Vyāsa) sendiri memegang jawatan pendeta Brahmā bagi korban itu. Dan dalam keturunan Dhanañjaya, yang terunggul—Susāmā—bertugas sebagai Sāmaga, pelantun nyanyian Sāman.

Word by Word

स्वयम्himself

ब्रह्मत्वम्the office/duty of Brahman (chief priesthood)

अकरोत्did / undertook

तस्यof him / his

सत्यवती-सुतःthe son of Satyavatī (Vyāsa)

धनञ्जयानाम्of the Dhanañjayas

ऋषभःthe best / bull (chief)

सुसामाSusāmā (proper name)

सामगःa Sāma-chanter (singer of Sāmans)

अभवत्became / was

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

Satyavatī

Vyāsa (Satyavatī-suta)

Susāmā

Dhanañjaya lineage

Brahmā-priest (ritual office)

Sāmaga (Sāmaveda chanter)

Yajña (sacrifice)

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?

Ritual and social dharma depend on rightly qualified persons fulfilling their designated roles: Vyāsa takes responsibility as Brahmā-priest, and Susāmā performs the Sāman-chanting—showing that sacred acts require competence, oversight, and adherence to proper offices.

What is happening in the narrative?

During a sacrifice being described, the narrator states that Vyāsa personally served as the Brahmā-priest (the supervisory priest), while Susāmā, eminent in the Dhanañjaya group, served as the Sāmaveda chanter (Sāmaga).