Shloka 20

मातापितृपूजन-प्रधानधर्मः (Primacy of Filial Service) — Mārkaṇḍeya’s Account of the Vyādha’s Instruction

Devanagari script

कुवलाश्चस्य पुत्रैश्न तस्मिन्‌ वै बालुकार्णवे

Transliteration

kuvalāś casya putraiś na tasmin vai bālukārṇave

Translation

ਮਾਰਕੰਡੇਯ ਨੇ ਆਖਿਆ— ਅਤੇ ਕੂਵਲਾਸ਼ਵ ਆਪਣੇ ਪੁੱਤਰਾਂ ਸਮੇਤ ਉਸੇ ਰੇਤ ਦੇ ਸਮੁੰਦਰ ਵਰਗੇ ਵਿਸ਼ਾਲ ਰੇਤਲੇ ਮੈਦਾਨ ਵਿੱਚ ਮੌਜੂਦ ਸੀ।

Word by Word

• कुवलाः: the Kuvalas (a people/tribe)
• कुवलाः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: कुवल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• अस्य: of him / his
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: इदम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Genitive, Singular

• पुत्रैः: by/with (his) sons
• पुत्रैः: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुत्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Plural

• न: not
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न

• तस्मिन्: in that
• तस्मिन्: Adhikarana
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Locative, Singular

• वै: indeed / surely
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वै

• बालुका-अर्णवे: in the ocean of sand (sandy sea/desert)
• बालुका-अर्णवे: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: बालुका-अर्णव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Locative, Singular

Speaker

मार्कण्डेय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Mārkaṇḍeya
• Kuvalāśva
• Kuvalāśva’s sons
• bālukārṇava (ocean of sand)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The line underscores steadfast resolve in a daunting setting: a righteous king and his sons persist together through an inhospitable ‘ocean of sand’, suggesting that dharmic aims require endurance and shared responsibility.

What is happening in the narrative?

Mārkaṇḍeya continues a tale by locating King Kuvalāśva and his sons in a vast sandy expanse described as an ‘ocean of sand’, setting the scene for the next action in the episode.