Shloka 286
मौसलपर्व — अध्याय ८
Arjuna’s evacuation of Dvārakā, Vasudeva’s rites, and the caravan’s crisis
तव स्नेहात् पुराणर्षिवासुदेवश्वतुर्भुज: । जो स्नेहवश तुम्हारे रथके आगे चलते थे (सारथिका काम करते थे), वे वासुदेव कोई साधारण पुरुष नहीं, साक्षात् चक्र-गदाधारी पुरातन ऋषि चतुर्भुज नारायण थे
tava snehāt purāṇarṣi-vāsudevaś caturbhujaḥ | yo snehavaśaṁ tava rathasya agre calati sma (sārathikāṁ karoti sma), sa vāsudevo na kaścid sādhāraṇaḥ puruṣaḥ, sākṣāc cakra-gadā-dhārī purātanaṛṣiś caturbhujo nārāyaṇaḥ ||
Vyāsa disse: “Por afeição a ti, Vāsudeva —o antigo rishi de quatro braços— costumava caminhar à frente do teu carro e servir como teu cocheiro. Sabe que esse Vāsudeva não era um homem comum: ele era, em verdade, o próprio Nārāyaṇa, o sábio primordial, de quatro braços, portando o disco e a maça.”
व्यास उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that the Supreme may willingly take a humble role out of love, and that true discernment (right understanding) recognizes divinity even when it appears as ordinary service.
Vyāsa reminds the listener that the one who served as charioteer—walking before the chariot out of affection—was not merely a human ally but Nārāyaṇa himself, four-armed and bearing the divine weapons.