Shloka 76

कृतयुगवर्णनम् तथा राजधर्मोपदेशः

Kṛtayuga Description and Instruction on Royal Dharma

Devanagari script

केचिद्धारिद्रसंकाशा: कारण्डवनिभास्तथा । केचित्‌ कमलपत्राभा: केचिद्धिड्डुलसप्रभा:

Transliteration

ke cid dhāridra-saṅkāśāḥ kāraṇḍava-nibhās tathā | ke cit kamala-patrābhāḥ ke cid hiṅgula-sa-prabhāḥ ||

Translation

ไวศัมปายนะกล่าวว่า “เมฆบางก้อนเหลืองดุจขมิ้น บางก้อนคล้ายนกการัณฑวะ บางก้อนส่องประกายดุจใบบัว และบางก้อนมีเรืองรองแดงดุจหิงคุละ (ชาด)”

Word by Word

• केचित्: some (of them)
• केचित्: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: क-चित् (प्रातिपदिक: क + चित्)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• दारिद्र-संकाशाः: resembling poverty/wan-looking
• दारिद्र-संकाशाः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दारिद्र-संकाश (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• कारण्डव-निभाः: like a kāraṇḍava bird
• कारण्डव-निभाः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कारण्डव-निभ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• तथा: also/likewise
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा

• केचित्: some (of them)
• केचित्: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: क-चित् (प्रातिपदिक: क + चित्)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• कमल-पत्र-आभाः: having the appearance of lotus-leaves
• कमल-पत्र-आभाः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कमल-पत्र-आभ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• केचित्: some (of them)
• केचित्: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: क-चित् (प्रातिपदिक: क + चित्)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• हिड्डुलस-प्रभाः: having the luster of hiḍḍula/hiṅgula (vermilion-like mineral)
• हिड्डुलस-प्रभाः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: हिड्डुलस-प्रभ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśaṃpāyana
• dhāridra (rain-cloud)
• kāraṇḍava (bird)
• kamala (lotus)
• hiṅgula (vermilion/cinnabar)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse primarily offers descriptive imagery rather than a direct injunction: it highlights the diversity of appearances in the world. Implicitly, it encourages careful perception and the recognition that outward form varies widely and should be understood with discernment rather than quick judgment.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśaṃpāyana is describing a scene filled with varied colors and forms—some dark like clouds, some like waterfowl, some glossy like lotus leaves, and some red like vermilion—using natural similes to make the visual impression vivid.