Shloka 85

Āṇīmāṇḍavya–Upākhyāna

The Account of Āṇīmāṇḍavya and the Birth of Vidura

Devanagari script

वैशम्पायन उवाच एवमुक्तस्तु गाड़्रेयस्तद्युक्त प्रत्यभाषत । शृण्वतां भूमिपालानां पितुरर्थाय भारत

Transliteration

vaiśampāyana uvāca evam uktas tu gāḍreyaḥ tad-yuktaḥ pratyabhāṣata | śṛṇvatāṃ bhūmipālānāṃ pitur arthāya bhārata

Translation

Vaiśampāyana nói: Được nói như thế, Gāḍreya—điềm tĩnh và đáp lời đúng mực—đã trả lời trước sự chứng kiến của các vua đang lắng nghe, hỡi Bhārata, vì lợi ích của phụ thân mình.

Word by Word

वैशम्पायनःVaiśampāyana

उवाचsaid

एवम्thus

उक्तःspoken to / addressed

तुbut/indeed

गाड्रेयःGāḍreya (a person, patronymic)

तत्that

युक्तःappropriate/fit; composed

प्रत्यभाषतreplied

शृण्वताम्of (those) listening

भूमिपालानाम्of the kings (earth-protectors)

पितुःof (his) father

अर्थायfor the sake/purpose

भारतO Bhārata

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

Gāḍreya

Bhārata (addressee)

bhūmipālāḥ (kings/rulers)

pitā (father)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

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 dharma expressed as filial responsibility: Gāḍreya’s speech is explicitly oriented toward his father’s welfare (pitur arthāya) and is delivered in a public setting, implying that ethical action should withstand communal scrutiny.

What is happening in the narrative?

It is a narrative bridge: Vaiśampāyana reports that, after being addressed, Gāḍreya gives his reply. The reply is made before an audience of kings, and the narrator underscores the motive—he speaks for his father’s sake.