Shloka 83
वाचको भरतमश्रेष्ठ व्यक्ताक्षरपदस्वर: | भविष्यं श्रावयेद् विद्वान् भारतं भरतर्षभ
vācako bharataśreṣṭha vyaktākṣarapadasvaraḥ | bhaviṣyaṃ śrāvayed vidvān bhārataṃ bharatarṣabha ||
Vaiśampāyana berkata: “Wahai yang terbaik dalam keturunan Bharata, seorang pembaca hendaklah seorang yang berilmu, melafazkan setiap suku kata, perkataan, dan intonasi dengan jelas. Dengan demikian dia harus memperdengarkan Bhārata—wahai ‘lembu jantan’ di antara Bharata—dan juga membacakan bahagian Bhaviṣya (menurut tradisi Harivaṃśa).”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches the dharma of recitation: sacred narrative should be transmitted by a learned narrator with precise pronunciation—clear syllables, words, and accents—so that meaning and tradition are preserved without distortion.
Vaiśampāyana lays down a guideline about how the Bhārata should be publicly recited: the storyteller must be competent and articulate, and should recite the epic (and related ‘Bhaviṣya’ material) in a clear, disciplined manner.