Shloka 23

Kubera’s Arrival and the Disclosure of Agastya’s Curse

Vaiśaṃpāyana–Janamejaya Narrative

Devanagari script

भुक्त्वा चान्नानि दुष्प्रज्ञ कथमस्मान्‌ जिहीर्षसि । एवमेव वृथाचारो वृथावृद्धों वृथामति:,“खोटी बुद्धिवाले राक्षस! तू हमारा अन्न खाकर हमें ही हर ले जानेकी इच्छा कैसे करता है? इस प्रकार तो अबतक तूने ब्राह्मणरूपसे जो आचार दिखाया था, वह सब व्यर्थ ही था। तेरा बढ़ना या वृद्ध होना भी व्यर्थ ही है। तेरी बुद्धि भी व्यर्थ है

Transliteration

bhuktvā cānnāni duṣprajña katham asmān jihīrṣasi | evam eva vṛthācāro vṛthāvṛddhoṁ vṛthāmatiḥ ||

Translation

ఓ దుష్ప్రజ్ఞా! మా అన్నం భుజించి మమ్మల్ని అపహరించాలనుకోవడం ఎలా? నీవు అలా చేస్తే ఇప్పటివరకు బ్రాహ్మణుడివలె చూపిన ఆచారం అంతా వ్యర్థమే. నీ పెరుగుదల, నీ పరిపక్వత—నీ బుద్ధి కూడా వ్యర్థమే.

Word by Word

• [{'term': 'bhuktvā', 'definition': 'having eaten'}, {'term': 'annāni', 'definition': 'foods, provisions'}, {'term': 'duṣprajña', 'definition': 'of bad understanding

• foolish, wicked-minded'}, {'term': 'katham', 'definition': 'how? in what way?'}, {'term': 'asmān', 'definition': 'us (accusative plural)'}, {'term': 'jihīrṣasi', 'definition': 'you wish to take away/carry off

• you intend to abduct'}, {'term': 'evam eva', 'definition': 'just so

• in this very manner'}, {'term': 'vṛthā', 'definition': 'in vain

• fruitlessly'}, {'term': 'ācāra', 'definition': 'conduct, customary behavior

• ethical practice'}, {'term': 'vṛddha', 'definition': 'grown, mature

• aged'}, {'term': 'mati', 'definition': 'mind, understanding, intellect'}]

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse condemns betrayal of hospitality: accepting someone’s food and protection and then harming them is a grave breach of dharma. External displays of piety (such as brahmin-like conduct) are worthless if one’s intent is predatory; true virtue is measured by consistent ethical action.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the forest narrative, a speaker rebukes a deceitful aggressor who has eaten their provisions and then seeks to seize them. The rebuke exposes the hypocrisy of a brahmin-like façade and declares the offender’s maturity and intellect ‘vain’ because they are used in service of adharma.