Shloka 21

The Horse’s Journey

to Cyavana’s Hermitage

Devanagari script

शशंसुर्ब्राह्मणबलं ते तु देवादिदुर्ल्लभम् । ततो राजा बहुधनं ब्राह्मणेभ्योऽददन्महान्

Transliteration

śaśaṃsurbrāhmaṇabalaṃ te tu devādidurllabham | tato rājā bahudhanaṃ brāhmaṇebhyo'dadanmahān

Translation

เขาทั้งหลายสรรเสริญพลังแห่งพราหมณ์—พลังที่แม้เทวะทั้งปวงก็ยากจะได้มา. แล้วพระราชาผู้ยิ่งใหญ่ได้ถวายทรัพย์อันมากมายแก่พราหมณ์ทั้งหลาย.

Word by Word

• śaśaṃsuḥ: they praised/declared
• śaśaṃsuḥ: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: śaṃs (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect/परोक्शभूत), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), बहुवचन (plural); परस्मैपद

• brāhmaṇa-balam: the power of the Brahmins
• brāhmaṇa-balam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brāhmaṇa (प्रातिपदिक) + bala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (neuter), द्वितीया (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन (singular); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (genitive determinative): ‘ब्राह्मणानां बलम्’

• te: they
• te: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (masculine), प्रथमा (Nominative/1st), बहुवचन (plural); सर्वनाम

• tu: but/indeed
• tu: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निपात (particle), विरोध/अन्वयार्थे ‘but/indeed’

• deva-ādi-durlabham: hard to obtain even for the gods and others
• deva-ādi-durlabham: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: deva (प्रातिपदिक) + ādi (प्रातिपदिक) + durlabha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (neuter), द्वितीया (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन (singular); विशेषणम् (adjective) ‘ब्राह्मणबलम्’ इति पदस्य; तत्पुरुष: ‘देवादिभिः दुर्लभम्’ (hard to obtain even for gods etc.)

• tataḥ: then/thereupon
• tataḥ: Kāla/Deśa-adhikaraṇa (काल/देश-अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अव्यय-प्रयोग (adverb) ‘thereupon/then’

• rājā: the king
• rājā: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rājan (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (masculine), प्रथमा (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (singular)

• bahu-dhanam: much wealth
• bahu-dhanam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bahu (प्रातिपदिक) + dhana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (neuter), द्वितीया (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन (singular); कर्मधारय: ‘बहु धनम्’

• brāhmaṇebhyaḥ: to the Brahmins
• brāhmaṇebhyaḥ: Sampradāna (सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brāhmaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (masculine), चतुर्थी (Dative/4th), बहुवचन (plural)

• adadat: gave
• adadat: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dā (धातु)
• Form: लङ् (Imperfect/past), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (singular); परस्मैपद

• mahān: great
• mahān: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahat (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (masculine), प्रथमा (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (singular); विशेषणम् ‘rājā’ इति पदस्य

Speaker

Narrator (contextual speaker not specified in the given verse)

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: adbhuta

Sandhi Resolution Notes

Sandhi Resolution Notes: śaśaṃsur + brāhmaṇabalaṃ → śaśaṃsurbrāhmaṇabalaṃ; brāhmaṇebhyaḥ + adadat → brāhmaṇebhyo'dadat; adadat + mahān → adadanmahān (final -t before m → -n).

Characters & Entities

• Brāhmaṇas
• Devas
• King

FAQs

Why is the power of brāhmaṇas described as difficult even for the gods to obtain?

The verse frames brāhmaṇa-bala as spiritual-moral potency grounded in tapas, learning, and dharma—qualities not automatically possessed by status, even divine status.

What ethical lesson does the king’s gift convey?

It presents dāna (generous giving), especially to worthy recipients aligned with dharma, as a hallmark of rājadharma and a way to honor spiritual authority.

Does this verse promote a specific theological emphasis in the Pātāla-khaṇḍa?

Here the emphasis is primarily dharmic and social-ethical—honoring brāhmaṇas and practicing dāna—rather than a direct sectarian doctrine, though it aligns with Purāṇic ideals of merit (puṇya) and righteous kingship.