Shloka 29

Nārāyaṇopadeśa to Mārkaṇḍeya (Cosmic Self-Identification and Yuga Doctrine) | नारायणोपदेशः

Devanagari script

शाखां शाखां महानद्यः संयान्ति सिकताशया: । धानापूपा मांसशाका: सदा पायसकर्दमा:,परंतु वास्तवमें वे सब भूने हुए जौके समान फल देनेमें असमर्थ, पूओंके समान अनेक छिद्रोंवाली, हिंसासे मिल सकनेवाली अर्थात्‌ मांसके समान अपवित्र, सूखे शाकके समान सारशून्य और खीरके समान रुचिकर लगनेवाली होनेपर भी कीचड़के समान चित्तमें मलिनता उत्पन्न करनेवाली हैं। बालूके कणोंके समान परस्पर विलग एवं ब्रह्माण्डरूपी बेंतके वृक्षकी शाखाओंमें बहनेवाली हैं

Transliteration

śākhāṁ śākhāṁ mahānadyāḥ saṁyānti sikatāśayāḥ | dhānāpūpā māṁsaśākāḥ sadā pāyasakardamāḥ ||

Translation

塔克夏说道：“一枝又一枝，大河奔流，其河床尽是沙砾。它们如炒熟之大麦——不能结出真实之果；如饼——孔隙遍布；如肉——不净且须以暴力得之；如枯菜——毫无精髓；纵使如乳粥般甘美悦意，终究却化作淤泥，滋生内心的染污。”

Word by Word

शाखाम्branch

शाखाम्branch (each branch; distributive repetition)

महानद्यःgreat rivers

संयान्तिgo/flow together; converge

सिकताशयाःhaving sand as their bed/reservoir; sand-bedded

धानापूपाःparched grains and cakes

मांसशाकाःmeat and vegetables

सदाalways

पायसकर्दमाःrice-milk (pudding) and mud

Speaker

ताक्ष्य उवाच

Characters & Entities

Tākṣya

mahānadyāḥ (great rivers)

śākhāḥ (branches/tributaries)

sikatā (sand)

dhāna (parched grain)

apūpa (cake)

māṁsa (meat)

śāka (vegetables/greens)

pāyasa (rice-milk)

kardama (mud)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse warns that worldly experiences can appear attractive and nourishing, yet often prove barren, impure, and ultimately muddying to the mind. It urges discernment (viveka): do not be deceived by pleasant taste or surface charm when the end-result is inner defilement and loss of spiritual clarity.

What is happening in the narrative?

Tākṣya speaks in a reflective, admonitory tone, using a chain of vivid comparisons (sand-filled branching rivers; parched grain; porous cakes; meat; dried greens; sweet rice-milk turning to mud) to characterize the deceptive nature of certain pursuits and their psychological consequences.