Shloka 85

Āṇīmāṇḍavya–Upākhyāna

The Account of Āṇīmāṇḍavya and the Birth of Vidura

Devanagari script

वैशम्पायन उवाच एवमुक्तस्तु गाड़्रेयस्तद्युक्त प्रत्यभाषत । शृण्वतां भूमिपालानां पितुरर्थाय भारत

Transliteration

vaiśampāyana uvāca evam uktas tu gāḍreyaḥ tad-yuktaḥ pratyabhāṣata | śṛṇvatāṃ bhūmipālānāṃ pitur arthāya bhārata

Translation

వైశంపాయనుడు పలికెను—ఓ భారతా! ఇలా అనబడినప్పుడు గాడ్రేయుడు, సంయమంతో యథోచితంగా, సమస్త భూపాలులు వినుచుండగా, తండ్రి హితార్థం సమాధానం చెప్పెను.

Word by Word

वैशम्पायनःVaiśampāyana

उवाचsaid

एवम्thus

उक्तःspoken to / addressed

तुbut/indeed

गाड्रेयःGāḍreya (a person, patronymic)

तत्that

युक्तःappropriate/fit; composed

प्रत्यभाषतreplied

शृण्वताम्of (those) listening

भूमिपालानाम्of the kings (earth-protectors)

पितुःof (his) father

अर्थायfor the sake/purpose

भारतO Bhārata

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

Gāḍreya

Bhārata (addressee)

bhūmipālāḥ (kings/rulers)

pitā (father)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights dharma expressed as filial responsibility: Gāḍreya’s speech is explicitly oriented toward his father’s welfare (pitur arthāya) and is delivered in a public setting, implying that ethical action should withstand communal scrutiny.

What is happening in the narrative?

It is a narrative bridge: Vaiśampāyana reports that, after being addressed, Gāḍreya gives his reply. The reply is made before an audience of kings, and the narrator underscores the motive—he speaks for his father’s sake.