Shloka 5

Vaiśravaṇa-sabhā-varṇanam

Description of Kubera’s Assembly Hall

Devanagari script

तस्यां वैश्रवणो राजा विचित्राभरणाम्बर:,उस सभामें सूर्यके समान चमकीले दिव्य बिछौनोंसे ढके हुए तथा दिव्य पादपीठोंसे सुशोभित श्रेष्ठ सिंहासनपर कानोंमें ज्योतिसे जगमगाते कुण्डल और अंगोंमें विचित्र वस्त्र एवं आभूषण धारण करनेवाले श्रीमान्‌ राजा वैश्रवण (कुबेर) सहसौं स्त्रियोंसे घिरे हुए बैठते हैं

Transliteration

tasyāṃ vaiśravaṇo rājā vicitrābharaṇāmbaraḥ

Translation

那罗陀说：在那辉煌的殿堂中，毗舍罗伐那（俱毗罗）王端坐于最尊胜的狮子宝座之上，身披奇妙衣饰，佩戴华丽宝严。其耳环放射光辉，众多女子环侍左右；座前又有天界足几与如日般闪耀的神妙覆饰，使宝座更显庄严——此乃王者富饶与奢华的象征。

Word by Word

तस्याम्in that (assembly)

वैश्रवणःVaiśravaṇa (Kubera)

राजाking

विचित्राभरणाम्बरःhe whose ornaments and garments are variegated/wondrous

Speaker

नारद उवाच

Characters & Entities

Nārada

Vaiśravaṇa (Kubera)

sabhā (assembly hall)

siṃhāsana (lion-throne)

kuṇḍala (earrings)

ābharaṇa (ornaments)

ambara (garments)

pādapīṭha (footstool)

divya bichaune/āsana-ācchādana (divine coverings, implied by context)

many women (striyaḥ)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse foregrounds the theme of worldly prosperity and royal magnificence as a visible sign of power and fortune. In the broader ethical frame of the Mahābhārata, such splendor can inspire admiration but also serves as a reminder that wealth and display are external and potentially transient, inviting discernment rather than attachment.

What is happening in the narrative?

Nārada is describing the grandeur of the celestial hall and its lord, Vaiśravaṇa (Kubera). He portrays Kubera seated on an excellent throne, radiant with ornaments and garments, attended by many women, with divine furnishings enhancing the hall’s brilliance.