Shloka 88

Adhyāya 284: Tapas as a Corrective to Household Attachment

Parāśara’s Instruction

Devanagari script

नमो नर्तनशीलाय मुखवादित्रवादिने । नाद्योपहारलुब्धाय गतिवादित्रशालिने,आपका ताण्डव-नृत्य बराबर चलता रहता है। आप मुखसे शृंगी आदि बाजे बजानेमें कुशल हैं। कमलपुष्पकी भेंट लेनेके लिये सदा उत्सुक रहते हैं। गाने और बजानेकी कलामें तत्पर रहकर आप बड़ी शोभा पाते हैं। आपको प्रणाम है

Transliteration

namo nartanaśīlāya mukhavāditravādine | nādyopahāralubdhāya gativāditraśāline ||

Translation

Sembah sujudku kepada-Mu, yang sentiasa tekun dalam tarian berirama; yang mahir melahirkan bunyi muzik bahkan dengan mulut bagaikan alat tiupan; yang sentiasa berkenan akan persembahan yang diiringi nyanyian dan pertunjukan; dan yang tampak mulia kerana penguasaan melodi, rentak, serta seni alat muzik. Kepada-Mu aku menunduk hormat.

Word by Word

• नमः: salutation, homage
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: नमस्
• Form: true

• नर्तनशीलाय: to the one whose nature is dancing
• नर्तनशीलाय: Sampradana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: नर्तनशील
• Form: Masculine, Dative, Singular

• मुखवादित्रवादिने: to the player of mouth-instruments (wind instruments)
• मुखवादित्रवादिने: Sampradana
• Type: Noun
• Root: मुखवादित्रवादिन्
• Form: Masculine, Dative, Singular

• नाद्योपहारलुब्धाय: to the one eager/greedy for offerings of lotus-flowers
• नाद्योपहारलुब्धाय: Sampradana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: नाद्योपहारलुब्ध
• Form: Masculine, Dative, Singular

• गतिवादित्रशालिने: to the one adorned with (skill in) song/dance and instruments
• गतिवादित्रशालिने: Sampradana
• Type: Noun
• Root: गतिवादित्रशालिन्
• Form: Masculine, Dative, Singular

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhīṣma
• the praised deity (implicitly Śiva as Naṭarāja/Tāṇḍava-dancer)
• vāditra (musical instruments)
• upahāra (offerings)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Devotion can be expressed through disciplined arts—dance, rhythm, and music—when offered as worship. The verse values sincere offering and cultivated skill as a dharmic mode of reverence, turning aesthetic practice into spiritual homage.

What is happening in the narrative?

In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma continues a hymn-like praise, saluting a deity characterized by perpetual dance and musical mastery, and describing the deity’s delight in offerings made through performance. It functions as devotional glorification within Bhīṣma’s broader instruction.