Shloka 30

Duḥṣanta at Kaṇva-Āśrama; Śakuntalā’s Reception and Origin Prelude (दुःषन्तस्य कण्वाश्रमागमनम्)

Devanagari script

गविष्ठश्न॒ वनायुश्न दीर्घजिद्दश्व॒ दानव: । असंख्येया: स्मृतास्तेषां पुत्रा: पौत्राश्न भारत,एकाक्ष, वीर मृतपा, प्रलम्ब, नरक, वातापी, शत्रुतपन, महान्‌ असुर शठ, गविष्ठ, वनायु तथा दानव दीर्घजिह्न। भारत! इन सबके पुत्र-पौत्र असंख्य बताये गये हैं

Transliteration

gaviṣṭhaśnaḥ vanāyuśnaḥ dīrghajihnaś ca dānavaḥ | asaṅkhyeyāḥ smṛtās teṣāṃ putrāḥ pautrāś ca bhārata ||

Translation

గవిష్ఠుడు, వనాయువు, దానవుడు దీర్ఘజిహ్నుడు— ఓ భారతా! వీరి కుమారులు, మనుమలు అసంఖ్యేయులని స్మరించబడుతున్నారు.

Word by Word

गविष्ठःGaviṣṭha (proper name)

वनायुःVanāyu (proper name)

दीर्घजिह्नःDīrghajihna (long-tongued; proper name)

दानवःDānava (a demon; here a proper name/class term)

असंख्येयाःcountless

स्मृताःare said/are remembered (as)

तेषाम्of them

पुत्राःsons

पौत्राःgrandsons

भारतO Bhārata

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

Bhārata (Janamejaya)

Gaviṣṭhaśna

Vanāyuśna

Dīrghajihna

Dānava(s)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the immensity of certain Dānava lineages—so vast that their descendants are said to be beyond counting—suggesting how expansive and persistent non-dharmic forces can be within the epic’s moral universe.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana continues a genealogical catalogue, naming specific Dānava figures and stating that their sons and grandsons are innumerable, a typical epic device to convey the breadth of beings involved in the larger history.