Shloka 12

Devanagari script

सो<हं पाप: कृतघ्नश्न कृपणश्चानृतोडपि च | गुरोर्य: कृतकार्य: संस्तत्‌ करोमि न भाषितम्‌,“मैं पापी, कृतघ्न, कृपण और मिथ्यावादी हूँ, जिसने गुरुसे तो अपना काम करा लिया, परंतु स्वयं जो उन्हें देनेकी प्रतिज्ञा की है, उसकी पूर्ति नहीं कर पा रहा हूँ

Transliteration

so’haṁ pāpaḥ kṛtaghnaś ca kṛpaṇaś cānṛto’pi ca | guror yaḥ kṛtakāryaḥ san tat karomi na bhāṣitam ||

Translation

那罗陀说道：“我有罪——忘恩负义、吝啬，甚至口出虚妄。借助师长成就了自己的目的，我却仍未能履行我对他所许下的诺言。”

Word by Word

सःhe/that (I)

अहम्I

पापःsinful

कृतघ्नःungrateful

कृपणःmiserly/wretched

चand

अनृतःuntruthful/false

अपिalso/even

चand

गुरोःof the teacher

यःwho

कृतकार्यःone whose purpose is accomplished (having got his work done)

सन्being

तत्that (promise/thing)

करोमिI do / I fulfill

नnot

भाषितम्what was spoken / the spoken word (promise)

Speaker

नारद उवाच

Characters & Entities

Nārada

guru (teacher)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

One must not become kṛtaghna (ungrateful) after receiving help—especially from a guru. Dharma requires truthfulness and the fulfillment of one’s spoken pledge; failing to repay a benefactor is treated as a serious ethical fault.

What is happening in the narrative?

Nārada openly condemns his own conduct: he has benefited from his teacher’s assistance, yet he has not carried out the repayment or promised act he had verbally pledged. The verse frames this as a moral lapse involving ingratitude, miserliness, and untruth.