वैशम्पायन उवाच यदर्थ शार्कईकानग्निर्न ददाह तथागते । तत् ते सर्व प्रवक्ष्यामि यथाभूतमरिंदम
vaiśampāyana uvāca | yadarthaṃ śārkāikān agnir na dadāha tathāgate | tat te sarvaṃ pravakṣyāmi yathābhūtam ariṃdama ||
Wika ni Vaiśampāyana: “O tagapagpabagsak ng mga kaaway, isasalaysay ko sa iyo nang buo at ayon sa katotohanan kung bakit, kahit naganap na ang kakila-kilabot na paglalagablab na iyon, hindi sinunog ni Agni ang mga Śārkāika, at kung paano mismo naganap ang pangyayaring iyon. Makinig ka.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
The verse foregrounds truthful narration and moral causality: extraordinary outcomes (such as divine fire not burning a particular group) are presented as having specific reasons, which the narrator promises to relate exactly as they occurred.
Vaiśampāyana, addressing King Janamejaya, transitions into an explanatory account: he will describe why Agni spared the Śārkāikas during a terrifying fire and will recount the incident in full detail.