Shloka 8

युधिष्ठिरप्रश्नः—विश्वामित्रस्य ब्राह्मणत्वकौतूहलम् | Yudhiṣṭhira’s Inquiry on Viśvāmitra’s Attainment of Brāhmaṇya

Devanagari script

नाभिवादयते ज्येष्ठं देवरातं नराधिप । पुत्रा: पज्चाशदेवापि शप्ता: श्वपचतां गता:

Transliteration

Yudhiṣṭhira uvāca: nābhivādayate jyeṣṭhaṃ Devarātaṃ narādhipa; putrāḥ pañcāśad evāpi śaptāḥ śvapacatāṃ gatāḥ.

Translation

玉提湿提罗说道：“大王啊，他们不向长子提婆罗多（Devarāta）致敬礼拜。因此，那五十个儿子也都因受诅咒而堕为食犬者（śvapaca，贱民/弃民）之境。”此段强调：敬长与承认家族中正当的长幼次序具有沉重的伦理分量；拒绝应有的尊礼被视为违背达摩，招致严峻的社会与精神后果。

Word by Word

• {'nābhivādayate': 'did not salute / did not pay respectful obeisance', 'jyeṣṭham': 'the eldest (son/brother)

• senior-most', 'Devarātam': 'Devarāta (proper name

• here, Viśvāmitra’s eldest son, also associated with Śunaḥśepa in later tradition)', 'narādhipa': 'O ruler of men

• king', 'putrāḥ': 'sons', 'pañcāśat': 'fifty', 'eva': 'indeed

• even', 'api': 'also

• even', 'śaptāḥ': 'cursed', 'śvapaca': 'dog-cooker

• a term for an outcaste/caṇḍāla in classical usage', 'śvapacatām gatāḥ': 'went to the state/condition of śvapacas (became outcastes)'}

Speaker

युधिछिर उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Yudhiṣṭhira
• Devarāta
• Viśvāmitra
• Śunaḥśepa
• the fifty sons of Viśvāmitra
• narādhipa (the addressed king)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse stresses that honoring the rightful senior (jyeṣṭha) is a duty within dharma; deliberate refusal of respect is treated as a serious moral fault that can bring severe consequences.

What is happening in the narrative?

Yudhiṣṭhira recounts that Devarāta, the eldest, was not saluted by his younger brothers; as a result, they were cursed and are said to have become śvapacas (outcastes).