Shloka 118

Devanagari script

कासि कस्यासि कल्याणि कि वा मृगयसे वने । त्वां दृष्टवा व्यथिता: स्मेह कच्चित्‌ त्वमसि मानुषी,“कल्याणि! तुम कौन हो? किसकी स्त्री हो और इस वनमें क्या खोज रही हो? तुम्हें देखकर हम बहुत दु:खी हैं। क्या तुम मानवी हो?

Transliteration

kāsi kasyāsi kalyāṇi ki vā mṛgayase vane | tvāṁ dṛṣṭvā vyathitāḥ smeha kaccit tvam asi mānuṣī ||

Translation

พฤหทัศวะกล่าวว่า— “แม่หญิงผู้เป็นมงคล เจ้าเป็นใคร? เป็นภรรยาของผู้ใด และมาสืบเสาะสิ่งใดในพงไพรนี้? ครั้นได้เห็นเจ้า พวกเราก็ร้อนรนทุกข์ใจยิ่งนัก บอกเถิด—เจ้ามนุษย์หรือไม่?”

Word by Word

काwho (f.)

असिare

कस्यof whom / whose

असिare

कल्याणिO auspicious one / O fair lady

किम्what

वाor

मृगयसेdo you seek / hunt for

वनेin the forest

त्वाम्you

दृष्ट्वाhaving seen

व्यथिताःdistressed

स्मindeed / (particle with past sense)

इहhere

कच्चित्surely? / I hope (interrogative particle)

त्वम्you

असिare

मानुषीa human woman

Speaker

बृहृदश्च उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bṛhadaśva

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse models dharmic conduct toward a vulnerable stranger: address her respectfully, inquire about identity and need, and respond with compassionate concern rather than suspicion or exploitation.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bṛhadaśva encounters an unknown woman in the forest and, struck by her condition, questions her gently—who she is, to whom she is connected (as wife), what she is seeking, and whether she is human—signaling alarm and readiness to help.