Shloka 4

विश्वामित्रस्य तपोविघ्नः, मेनकाप्रसङ्गः, महर्षिपदप्रदानम्

Visvamitra’s Austerity Obstructed; Menaka Episode; Conferment of Maharshi Status

Devanagari script

तत: कालेन महता मेनका परमाऽप्सरा:।पुष्करेषु नरश्रेष्ठ स्नातुं समुपचक्रमे।।।।

Transliteration

tataḥ kālena mahatā menakā paramāpsarāḥ | puṣkareṣu naraśreṣṭha snātuṃ samupacakrame ||

Translation

ထို့နောက် အချိန်ကာလအလွန်ရှည်လျားစွာ ကုန်လွန်ပြီးနောက် မေနကာ—အပ္စရာတို့အတွင်း အမြတ်ဆုံး—သည် ပုෂ္ကရ၌ ရေချိုးဆင်းရန် စတင်လာ၏၊ အို လူတို့အတွင်း အမြတ်ဆုံးသူရေ။

Word by Word

• tataḥ: thereafter
• tataḥ: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatas (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (indeclinable adverb); अर्थे—अनन्तरम् (thereafter)

• kālena: after (a lapse of) time
• kālena: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāla (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (करण), एकवचन; instrumental—"by/after (lapse of) time"

• mahatā: great
• mahatā: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahat (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन; विशेषणम्—कालेन (qualifies kālena)

• menakā: Menakā
• menakā: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: menakā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्तृपद (subject)

• paramāpsarāḥ: the supreme nymph
• paramāpsarāḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: parama + apsaras (प्रातिपदिके)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्मधारय-समासः (paramā apsarā) — मेनकायाः विशेषणरूपेण

• puṣkareṣu: at Puṣkara
• puṣkareṣu: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: puṣkara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (अधिकरण), बहुवचन; locative—"at/in Puṣkara (places/ponds)"

• naraśreṣṭha: O best of men
• naraśreṣṭha: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nara + śreṣṭha (प्रातिपदिके)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (narāṇāṃ śreṣṭhaḥ)

• snātum: to bathe
• snātum: Prayojana (प्रयोजन)
• Type: Verb
• Root: snā (धातु)
• Form: तुमुन्-प्रत्ययान्त (infinitive); अर्थे—स्नानार्थम् (to bathe)

• samupacakrame: began/commenced
• samupacakrame: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sam-upa-√kram (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (परोक्षभूत/Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, आत्मनेपद; समुप-उपसर्गयुक्त

Context

Indra along with all the maruts spoke to the celestial nymph Rambha, words that augured well for them and not for kaushika (Viswamitra).ityārṣē śrīmadrāmāyaṇē vālmīkīya ādikāvyē bālakāṇḍē triṣaṣṭitamassarga:৷৷Thus ends the sixtythird sarga of Balakanda of the holy Ramayana the first epic composed by sage Valmiki.

Characters & Entities

• Menakā
• Apsaras (Apsarāḥ)
• Puṣkara

FAQs

What is the core ethical principle (Dharma) in this verse?

The verse sets the stage for a dharmic test: circumstances arise that challenge an ascetic’s self-mastery, reminding that Dharma is proven under pressure, not merely proclaimed.

What is the narrative situation?

Menakā arrives at Puṣkara and begins bathing—an entry that will soon intersect with Viśvāmitra’s austerities.

Which character virtue is emphasized?

Indirectly, the coming test of restraint (saṃyama) for the ascetic; Menakā’s role is instrumental within the plot.