तत्किमेतन्महाबाहो सत्यं ब्रूहि ममाऽचलम् । त्वत्तो विश्रान्तिमाप्नोमि चेतसा भ्रमता जगत् ॥ ३४ ॥
tatkimētanmahābāhō satyaṁ brūhi mamā’calam | tvattō viśrāntimāpnōmi cētasā bhramatā jagat || 34 ||
Translation
So, mighty one, tell me truly: is this so? Tell me firmly. From you I shall find rest, my mind that wanders the world.
Word by word
- tat
- so
- kim
- is
- ētan
- (etat) this
- mahābāhō
- mighty one
- satyaṁ
- truly
- brūhi
- tell
- mama
- me
- acalam
- firmly
- tvattō
- (tvattaḥ) from you
- viśrāntim
- rest
- āpnōmi
- I shall find
- cētasā
- my mind
- bhramatā
- that wanders
- jagat
- the world
Meaning
Śuka asks Janaka to confirm. His question is not "what is the truth?" but "is this true?" (satyam), and he asks for an answer that is firm (acala). The commentary paraphrases: if what I have found by my own reasoning is the truth, teach it to me so that it settles in my heart beyond doubt; for my mind, distrustful, keeps circling among things, wondering whether this or that is the real. The last words are the key: "from you I shall find rest" (tvatto viśrāntim āpnomi). Śuka knows what he lacks. He does not want more knowledge; he wants the mind that wanders through the world (bhramatā jagat) to come home.