Shloka 8

Plakṣāvataraṇa–Yamunā Tīrtha and Prajāpati’s Vedī

Kurukṣetra Threshold

Devanagari script

अन्रानुवंशं पठत: शृणु मे कुरुनन्दन । उलूखलैराभरणै: पिशाची यदभाषत,कुरुनन्दन! इस तीर्थके विषयमें एक परम्परा-प्राप्त कथाको सूचित करनेवाले कुछ श्लोक हैं जिन्हें मैं पढ़ता हूँ, तुम मेरे मुखसे सुनो--(प्राचीनकालकी बात है, कोई स्त्री अपने पुत्रके साथ इस तीर्थमें निवास करनेके लिये आयी थी, उससे) एक भयंकर पिशाचीने, जिसने ओखली-जैसे आभूषण पहन रखे थे, उन श्लोकोंको कहा था--

Transliteration

anrānuvamśaṃ paṭhataḥ śṛṇu me kurunandana | ulūkhalair ābharaṇaiḥ piśācī yad abhāṣata ||

Translation

Hỡi niềm vui của dòng Kuru, hãy nghe ta khi ta đọc lại một truyền thống cổ xưa truyền theo huyết hệ. Ta sẽ đọc những vần kệ đã được thốt ra tại nơi này bởi một nữ quỷ ghê rợn, mình đeo trang sức tựa những chiếc cối giã—những vần kệ gợi nhắc một chuyện xưa được truyền thừa gắn với bến thánh này.

Word by Word

अन्रानुवंशम्the traditional lineage/account (received tradition)

पठतःI recite/read

शृणुhear (listen)

मेof me / my

कुरुनन्दनO delight of the Kurus

उलूखलैःwith mortars

आभरणैःwith ornaments

पिशाचीa female piśāca (ghoul/demoness)

यत्which (that which)

अभाषतshe spoke/said

कुरुनन्दनO delight of the Kurus

Speaker

लोगश उवाच

Characters & Entities

Kurunandana (Kuru prince, likely Yudhiṣṭhira)

Piśācī (female goblin)

Ulūkhala (mortar, as ornament imagery)

Tīrtha (sacred ford/pilgrimage place; implied by context)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse frames the tīrtha’s significance through a tradition transmitted in succession: sacred places are understood not only by geography but by remembered narratives, and one should listen attentively to inherited accounts that preserve moral and ritual meaning.

What is happening in the narrative?

The speaker addresses a Kuru prince and announces that he will recite an old, tradition-based story connected with the tīrtha, specifically verses once spoken there by a terrifying piśācī described as wearing mortar-like ornaments.