Shloka 4

उत्तङ्कोपाख्यानम् — Maṇi-Kuṇḍala Retrieval and Entry into Nāgaloka

Chapter 57

Devanagari script

उत्तड़क उवाच राजन गुर्वर्थिनं विद्धि चरन्तं मामिहागतम्‌ । न च गुर्वर्थमुद्युक्त हिंस्पमाहुर्मनीषिण:

Transliteration

Uttaṅka uvāca: rājan gurv-arthinaṃ viddhi carantaṃ mām ihāgatam | na ca gurv-artham udyuktaṃ hiṃsam āhur manīṣiṇaḥ ||

Translation

ఉత్తంకుడు పలికెను—“రాజా! నన్ను గురుకార్యార్థి (గురుదక్షిణార్థి)గా తెలుసుకొనుము; ఆ పనికోసమే సంచరిస్తూ ఇక్కడికి వచ్చాను. గురుకార్యానికి నిబద్ధుడైనవానిని హింసించరాదు అని మేధావులు చెబుతారు.”

Word by Word

• {'rājan': 'O king (vocative of rājan)', 'gurv-arthinam (guru-arthinam)': 'one seeking/acting for the teacher’s purpose

• one seeking guru’s due (esp. guru-dakṣiṇā)', 'viddhi': 'know (imperative of √vid)', 'carantam': 'wandering, moving about

• pursuing (present participle of √car)', 'mām': 'me', 'iha': 'here', 'āgatam': 'come, arrived (past participle of √gam with ā-)', 'na ca': 'and not

• moreover not', 'gurv-artham (guru-artham)': 'for the teacher’s purpose

• for the sake of the guru', 'udyuktam': 'one who is engaged/striving, intent upon (past participle of ud-√yuj)', 'hiṃsam': 'harm

• (to) injure/kill (accusative of hiṃsā / object of ‘āhuḥ’ in sense ‘(one) to be harmed’ negated)', 'āhuḥ': 'they say, they declare (3rd pl. perfect of √ah)', 'manīṣiṇaḥ': 'the wise, sages

Speaker

उत्तड़क उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Uttaṅka
• King (rājan)
• Guru (teacher)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

A person sincerely striving to fulfill a teacher’s claim—especially in the context of collecting guru-dakṣiṇā—deserves protection; harming such a duty-bound seeker is condemned by the wise.

What is happening in the narrative?

Uttaṅka identifies himself to the king as a wandering seeker acting for his guru’s requirement and invokes a recognized ethical norm: that one engaged in securing the guru’s due should not be injured.