Shloka 44

Trita in the Well (Udapāna-kathā) — Balarāma’s Tīrtha Observances

Devanagari script

कथमाप्लुत्य तस्मिंस्तु पुनराप्पायित: शशी । एतनमे सर्वमाचक्ष्व विस्तरेण महामुने,महामुने! उस तीर्थमें गोता लगाकर चन्द्रमा पुनः किस प्रकार हृष्ट-पुष्ट हुए? यह सब प्रसंग मुझे विस्तारपूर्वक बताइये

Transliteration

janamejaya uvāca | katham āplutya tasmiṁs tu punar āppāyitaḥ śaśī | etan me sarvam ācakṣva vistareṇa mahāmune ||

Translation

Janamejaya thưa: “Bạch đại hiền, Nguyệt thần sau khi tắm gội tại thánh độ ấy đã được bồi bổ và phục hồi ra sao? Xin hãy thuật cho trẫm toàn bộ sự việc này một cách tường tận.”

Word by Word

कथम्how?

आप्लुत्यhaving bathed / having plunged in

तस्मिन्in that (place)

तुindeed / but

पुनःagain

आप्पायितःwas nourished / was refreshed / was made to thrive

शशीthe moon

एतत्this

मेto me

सर्वम्all (of it)

आचक्ष्वtell / relate

विस्तरेणin detail / at length

महामुनेO great sage

Speaker

जनमेजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Janamejaya

Mahāmune (the sage addressed, traditionally Vaiśampāyana in the Janamejaya dialogue frame)

Śaśī (the Moon)

Tīrtha (the sacred bathing place/ford, unnamed here)

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 śraddhā-driven inquiry into tīrtha-māhātmya: sacred places and rites are portrayed as sources of renewal, and the listener’s duty is to seek detailed understanding from a qualified teacher.

What is happening in the narrative?

Within the Janamejaya–sage dialogue frame, Janamejaya asks the sage to explain—at length—how the Moon regained strength after bathing at a particular sacred ford, prompting a fuller account of the associated legend.