Shloka 4

Devanagari script

ते तु सर्वे महात्मानमूचू राजन्‌ हलायुधम्‌ । शृणु विस्तरशो राम यस्यायं पूर्वमाश्रम:,राजन्‌! तब वे सभी ऋषि महात्मा हलधरसे बोले--“बलरामजी! पहले यह आश्रम जिसके अधिकारमें था, उसकी कथा विस्तारपूर्वक सुनिये--

Transliteration

te tu sarve mahātmānam ūcu rājan halāyudham | śṛṇu vistaraśo rāma yasyāyaṃ pūrvam āśramaḥ ||

Translation

毗舍波耶那说道：于是诸位大圣者对持犁者哈拉尤陀（巴拉罗摩）说道：“大王啊，罗摩啊，请细听此精舍昔日所属之人的来历。”

Word by Word

तेthey

तुbut/indeed

सर्वेall

महात्मानम्the great-souled one

ऊचुःsaid/spoke

राजन्O king

हलायुधम्to/unto Halāyudha (Balarāma, whose weapon is a plough)

शृणुhear/listen

विस्तरशःin detail

रामO Rāma (Balarāma)

यस्यof whom/whose

अयम्this

पूर्वम्formerly/previously

आश्रमःhermitage/āśrama

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

Balarāma (Halāyudha, Haladhara)

the sages (ṛṣayaḥ)

the hermitage (āśrama)

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?

Sacred places and institutions like an āśrama are understood through their lineage and prior custodians; listening carefully to such accounts is presented as a respectful, dharmic way to understand the sanctity and authority of a place.

What is happening in the narrative?

A group of sages turns to Balarāma (called Halāyudha) and invites him to hear, in full detail, the story of the earlier owner or presiding figure of the hermitage they are discussing.