Shloka 24

नारायणीयमाख्यानम् (Nārāyaṇīyam Ākhyānam) — Nārada’s Return and Hymnic Consolidation

Devanagari script

तत एकाक्षरं नादं भोरित्येव समीरयन्‌

Transliteration

tata ekākṣaraṃ nādaṃ bhorityeva samīrayan

Translation

毗湿摩说：“接着，他只发出单音节之声‘bho’——不过是一声呼唤——便放出那回响。”

Word by Word

• ततः: then; thereupon
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तद्
• Form: Avyaya (ablatival adverb: 'from that/thereupon')

• एकाक्षरम्: single-syllabled
• एकाक्षरम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: एकाक्षर
• Form: Neuter, accusative, singular

• नादम्: sound; resonance
• नादम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: नाद
• Form: Masculine, accusative, singular

• भोः: O! hey!
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: भोः
• Form: Avyaya (vocative particle/interjection)

• इति: thus; saying
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इति
• Form: Avyaya (quotative particle)

• एव: indeed; just
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव
• Form: Avyaya (emphatic particle)

• समीरयन्: uttering; pronouncing
• समीरयन्: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: सम्-ईर्
• Form: Present active participle (शतृ), masculine nominative singular

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhīṣma

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the potency and intentionality of speech: even a minimal utterance—one syllable used as a direct call—can carry force and effect when voiced deliberately.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhīṣma describes a moment where someone produces a resonant sound by uttering the single syllable ‘bho’, functioning as a call or address, emphasizing the audible impact of that utterance.