Shloka 82

Adhyāya 90: Babhruvāhana’s Reception and the Commencement of Yudhiṣṭhira’s Aśvamedha

Devanagari script

प्रीतात्मा स तु तं वाक्यमिदमाह द्विजर्ष भम्‌ । वाग्मी तदा द्विजश्रेष्ठो धर्म: पुरुषविग्रह:

Transliteration

prītātmā sa tu taṃ vākyam idam āha dvijarṣabham | vāgmī tadā dvijaśreṣṭho dharmaḥ puruṣavigrahaḥ ||

Translation

他心怀欢悦，便对那位“婆罗门之雄”说出这番话。就在那时，善辩的二生者之最上者——以人身示现的法（Dharma）本尊——开口对他说道。

Word by Word

• प्रीतात्मा: one whose self is pleased (glad-hearted)
• प्रीतात्मा: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: प्रीत-आत्मन्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• सः: he
• सः: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• तु: but/indeed
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु

• तम्: that (him/it)
• तम्: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• वाक्यम्: speech/statement
• वाक्यम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: वाक्य
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• इदम्: this
• इदम्: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: इदम्
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• आह: said/spoke
• Type: Verb
• Root: अह् (अहति/आह)
• Form: Perfect (लिट्), 3rd, Singular, Parasmaipada

• द्विजर्षभम्: the bull among the twice-born (best Brahmin)
• द्विजर्षभम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्विज-ऋषभ
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• वाग्मी: eloquent
• वाग्मी: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वाग्मिन्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• तदा: then
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तदा

• द्विजश्रेष्ठः: the best of the twice-born
• द्विजश्रेष्ठः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्विज-श्रेष्ठ
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• धर्मः: Dharma / righteousness
• धर्मः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: धर्म
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• पुरुषविग्रहः: having a human form / embodied as a man
• पुरुषविग्रहः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुरुष-विग्रह
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

श्षशुर उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Dharma (personified, in human form)
• dvijarṣabha (an eminent Brahmin addressee)
• dvijaśreṣṭha (foremost Brahmin, epithet)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse frames ethical instruction by highlighting Dharma as an embodied, eloquent authority: true guidance is rooted in righteousness and conveyed through disciplined, meaningful speech.

What is happening in the narrative?

A pleased speaker addresses an eminent Brahmin; the narration identifies the interlocutor as Dharma in human form, signaling that the forthcoming dialogue carries moral and religious weight.