SB 1.13.38–39
नाहं वेद गतिं पित्रोर्भगवन्क्व गतावितः ।
अम्बा वा हतपुत्रार्ता क्व गता च तपस्विनी ॥ ३८ ॥
कर्णधार इवापारे भगवान्पारदर्शकः ।
अथाबभाषे भगवान्नारदो मुनिसत्तमः ॥ ३९ ॥
nāhaṁ veda gatiṁ pitror bhagavan kva gatāv itaḥ
ambā vā hata-putrārtā kva gatā ca tapasvinī
karṇadhāra ivāpāre bhagavān pāra-darśakaḥ
athābabhāṣe bhagavān nārado muni-sattamaḥ
Synonyms
yudhiṣṭhiraḥ — Yudhiṣṭhira; uvāca — said; bhagavan — O illustrious one [here indicating Śrī Nārada’s omniscience (śrī nāradasya sarvajñatāṁ dyotayan)120]; aham — I; na veda — do not know [na jāne121]; gatim — the ultimate destination [padavīm]; pitroḥ — of my uncles; kva — [or] where; gatau — they have gone; itaḥ — from here; [nor do I know (aham api na jānāmi)]; kva — where; ambā vā — my aunt; gatā — has gone; ārtā — being pained [pīḍāvatī]; ca — and; tapasvinī — sorrowful [duḥkha-yuktā]; hata-putrā — due to the death of her sons; [therefore please inform us of the truth (atas tattvaṁ vadeti śeṣaḥ)]; bhagavān — you alone, O omniscient one [sarvajñas tvam ataḥ122]; karṇa-dhāraḥ iva — like the captain of a ship [nāvika iva123]; [asmākam124] pāra-darśakaḥ — [can be] our guide to lead us across; apāre — the boundless [ocean of grief (śokārṇave)125]; atha — thereafter [after hearing the king’s questions (rājñaḥ praśnān anantaram eva)]; bhagavān — Bhagavān; nāradaḥ — Nārada; muni-sattamaḥ — the best of sages [implying that in responding to the king’s question, Nārada’s deliberation was effortless (uttara-dāna vicāra-śrama-rahita eva)]; ābabhāṣe — replied [uttaraṁ dattavān].
Translation
Yudhiṣṭhira said: “O illustrious one, I do not know the ultimate destination of my uncles or where they have gone from here. Nor do I know where my aunt has gone, being pained and sorrowful due to the death of her sons. You alone, O omniscient one, like the captain of a ship, can be our guide to lead us across the boundless ocean of grief.” Thereafter, Bhagavān Nārada, the best of sages, replied.