Shloka 10

Devanagari script

काकी च हलिमा चैव मालिनी बृंहता तथा । आर्या पलाला वैमित्रा सप्तैता: शिशुमातर:,काकी, हलिमा, मालिनी, बृंहता, आर्या, पलाला और वैमित्रा--ये सातों शिशुकी माताएँ हैं

Transliteration

kākī ca halimā caiva mālinī bṛṃhatā tathā | āryā palālā vaimitrā sapta etāḥ śiśu-mātaraḥ ||

Translation

Sinabi ni Mārkaṇḍeya: “Sina Kākī, Halimā, Mālinī, at gayundin si Bṛṃhatā; pati sina Āryā, Palālā, at Vaimitrā—ang pitong ito ang mga ina (mapag-arugang tagapangalaga) ng bata.”

Word by Word

काकीKākī (a woman named Kākī)

चand

हलिमाHalimā (a woman named Halimā)

चand

एवindeed/just

मालिनीMālinī (a woman named Mālinī)

बृंहताBṛṃhatā/Bṛṃhatī (a woman named Bṛṃhatā)

तथाlikewise/also

आर्याĀryā (a woman named Āryā)

पलालाPalālā (a woman named Palālā)

वैमित्राVaimitrā (a woman named Vaimitrā)

सप्तseven

एताःthese

शिशुमातरःmothers of infants/children

Speaker

मार्कण्डेय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Mārkaṇḍeya

Kākī

Halimā

Mālinī

Bṛṃhatā

Āryā

Palālā

Vaimitrā

the child (śiśu)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the idea of collective nurture and protection: a child’s welfare can be upheld by multiple maternal figures, emphasizing dharmic responsibility and caregiving beyond a single biological mother.

What is happening in the narrative?

Mārkaṇḍeya enumerates seven named women, identifying them as the child’s mothers/guardians, functioning as a formal listing within the story to clarify relationships and roles.