Shloka 22

Devanagari script

तव चापि प्रियं कर्तुमिच्छामि जलचारिणि । अनृतं नोक्तपूर्व च मया किंचन कहिचित्‌,जलचारिणि! मैं तुम्हारा भी प्रिय करना चाहता हूँ। मैंने पहले कभी कोई असत्य बात नहीं कही है

Transliteration

tava cāpi priyaṃ kartum icchāmi jalacāriṇi | anṛtaṃ noktapūrvaṃ ca mayā kiṃcana kadācit, jalacāriṇi ||

Translation

Arjuna disse: “Eu também desejo fazer o que te é agradável, ó habitante das águas. Nunca antes proferi qualquer falsidade—em tempo algum, em assunto algum—ó nascida das águas.”

Word by Word

तवof you/your

चand

अपिalso/even

प्रियम्a pleasing thing; what is dear

कर्तुम्to do

इच्छामिI desire/wish

जलचारिणिO water-dweller (one who moves in water)

अनृतम्falsehood/untruth

नnot

उक्तपूर्वम्previously spoken/said before

चand

मयाby me / I

किम्anything (in negation: at all)

चनeven (with negation: at all)

कदाचित्ever/at any time

जलचारिणिO water-dweller

Speaker

अजुन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Arjuna

jalacāriṇī (aquatic female being)

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?

The verse foregrounds satya (truthfulness) as a moral credential: Arjuna grounds his promise to please the other party in his lifelong commitment to never speaking falsehood, implying that ethical reliability strengthens one’s word and conduct.

What is happening in the narrative?

Arjuna addresses an aquatic female being (jalacāriṇī), expressing willingness to do what pleases her and asserting his established reputation for truthfulness, thereby seeking trust and affirming the sincerity of his intent.