Shloka 9

Nāgendra–Brāhmaṇa Saṃvāda: Praśna-vidhi and Dharmic Approach on the Gomatī Riverbank

Devanagari script

श्र॒त्वाश्चशिरसो मूर्ति देवस्प हरिमेधस:

Transliteration

śrutvā ca śiraso mūrtiṁ devaspa harimedhasaḥ

Translation

شَونک نے کہا—اس دیوتائی الہام یافتہ، تیز فہم صاحبِ خرد کے سر سے ظاہر ہونے والی اُس مورتی کا حال سن کر…

Word by Word

• श्रुत्वा: having heard
• श्रुत्वा: Adhikarana
• Type: Verb
• Root: श्रु (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वा (absolutive/gerund), कर्तरि

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• शिरसः: of the head
• शिरसः: Sambandha
• Type: Noun
• Root: शिरस्
• Form: Neuter, Genitive, Singular

• मूर्तिम्: form; manifestation
• मूर्तिम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: मूर्ति
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• देवस्य: of the god
• देवस्य: Sambandha
• Type: Noun
• Root: देव
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Singular

• हरिमेधसः: of Hari-medhas (one whose wisdom/medhas is Hari; epithet/name)
• हरिमेधसः: Sambandha
• Type: Noun
• Root: हरिमेधस्
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Singular

Speaker

शौनक उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Śaunaka
• Hari (Viṣṇu)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse frames a teaching through reverent inquiry: true understanding begins with attentive hearing (śravaṇa) about divine manifestations and the lives of the God-minded (harimedhas), implying that devotion and purified intellect are prerequisites for grasping dharma.

What is happening in the narrative?

Śaunaka introduces a question or continuation after hearing about a miraculous ‘form/manifestation’ connected with a head (śiras), referring to a divinely inspired, Hari-devoted figure; the line functions as a transition into further explanation of that event and its significance.