Shloka 21
Marutta’s Sacrifice and Agni’s Embassy (मरुत्त-यज्ञे दूतत्वम्)
यस्त्वं गत: प्रहितो जातवेदो बृहस्पतिं परिदातुं मरुत्ते । तत् किं प्राह स नृपो यक्ष्यमाण: कच्चिद् वच: प्रतिगृह्लाति तच्च
yas tvaṃ gataḥ prahito jātavedo bṛhaspatiṃ paridātuṃ marutte | tat kiṃ prāha sa nṛpo yakṣyamāṇaḥ kaccid vacaḥ pratigṛhlāti tac ca ||
Vyāsa nói: “Hỡi Jātavedas (Agni), ngươi đã được phái đi để đưa Bṛhaspati đến với Marutta. Vậy vị vua ấy—đang chuẩn bị cử hành lễ tế—đã nói gì? Ông ấy có tiếp nhận và thuận theo lời nhắn ấy chăng?”
व्यास उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical weight of accepting rightful counsel and messages in matters of sacrifice and governance: a king preparing a yajña must align his resolve with proper guidance and legitimate authority, since ritual action is inseparable from dharma.
Agni had been sent as a messenger to bring or convey Bṛhaspati to King Marutta. Vyāsa reports the inquiry—asking what Marutta replied and whether he accepted the message—framing the next turn of the episode about the king’s stance toward the gods’ preceptor and the planned sacrifice.