Shloka 15

Rathaghoṣa–Saṃjñāna: Damayantī’s Inference and the Dispatch of the Envoy (Āraṇyaka-parva, Adhyāya 71)

Devanagari script

किमिदं प्रार्थितं कर्तु प्रलब्धव्या न ते वयम्‌ । कथमल्पबलप्राणा वक्ष्यन्तीमे हया मम । महदध्वानमपि च गन्तव्यं कथमीदृशै:,“क्या तुमसे ऐसे ही घोड़े चुननेके लिये कहा था, तुम मुझे धोखा तो नहीं दे रहे हो। ये अल्प बल और शक्तिवाले घोड़े कैसे मेरा इतना बड़ा रास्ता तय कर सकेंगे? ऐसे घोड़ोंसे इतनी दूरतक रथ कैसे ले जाया जायगा?'

Transliteration

kim idaṃ prārthitaṃ kartu pralabdhavyā na te vayam | katham alpabala-prāṇā vakṣyantīme hayā mama | mahad adhvānam api ca gantavyaṃ katham īdṛśaiḥ ||

Translation

Disse Bṛhadaśva: “É isto o que te foi pedido que fizesses? Não devemos ser enganados por ti. Como estes cavalos de pouca força e vitalidade me carregarão? E como se há de empreender uma grande jornada com animais assim—como poderá uma carruagem ir tão longe com tais cavalos?”

Word by Word

• {'kim idam': 'what is this', 'prārthitam': 'requested, asked for', 'kartu(m)': 'to do, to accomplish', 'pralabdhavyāḥ': 'to be tricked/deceived (those who should be deceived)', 'na': 'not', 'te': 'by you / your', 'vayam': 'we', 'katham': 'how', 'alpa': 'little, small', 'bala': 'strength', 'prāṇa': 'life-breath, vitality, stamina', 'alpabala-prāṇāḥ': 'having little strength and vitality', 'vakṣyanti': 'will carry, will bear, will convey', 'ime': 'these', 'hayāḥ': 'horses', 'mama': 'my', 'mahat': 'great, large', 'adhvānam': 'road, journey, distance to be traveled', 'api ca': 'and also, moreover', 'gantavyam': 'to be gone/traveled

• must be undertaken', 'īdṛśaiḥ': 'with such (ones), of this kind'}

Speaker

बृहृदश्च उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bṛhadaśva
• horses (hayāḥ)
• chariot (implied by the context of carrying and long travel)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights ethical vigilance and practical discernment: one should not accept deception in entrusted tasks, and one must judge means (here, horses) by their capacity to fulfill the intended duty (a long journey).

What is happening in the narrative?

Bṛhadaśva challenges the selection of weak horses, suspecting he is being misled. He questions how such low-stamina horses could pull a chariot across a long distance, pressing for a choice suited to the journey’s demands.