Shloka 4
Ruru–Pramadvarā: Lineage, Fosterage, Betrothal, and the Snakebite Crisis (Ādi Parva, Adhyāya 8)
तस्य ब्रह्मन् रुरो: सर्व चरितं भूरितेजस: । विस्तरेण प्रवक्ष्यामि तच्छुणु त्वमशेषत:,ब्रह्मन्! मैं महातेजस्वी रुरुके सम्पूर्ण चरित्रका विस्तारपूर्वक वर्णन करूँगा। वह सब- का-सब आप सुनिये
tasya brahman ruroḥ sarva-caritaṁ bhūri-tejasaḥ | vistareṇa pravakṣyāmi tac chṛṇu tvam aśeṣataḥ ||
“Hỡi Bà-la-môn, ta sẽ thuật lại đầy đủ, tường tận toàn bộ cuộc đời của Ruru—bậc hùng dũng rực rỡ. Xin hãy lắng nghe trọn vẹn, không bỏ sót điều gì.”
शौनक उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse emphasizes the ethical discipline of transmission: a worthy narrative should be told carefully and completely, and the listener should hear it attentively. In the Mahābhārata’s tradition, full and faithful narration (vistareṇa, aśeṣataḥ) is itself a dharmic act that preserves meaning and moral nuance.
The speaker announces a transition into the detailed account of Ruru’s life. It functions as a framing line: the narrator promises a complete telling and instructs the listener to hear the story in its entirety.