पञ्च मा राजन्यबन्धुः प्रश्नानप्राक्षीत्तेषां नैकंचनाशकं विवक्तुमिति स होवाच यथा मा त्वं तदैतानवदो यथाहमेषां नैकंचन वेद यद्यहमिमानवेदिष्यं कथं ते नावक्ष्यमिति ॥ ५.३.५ ॥
pañca mā rājanyabandhuḥ praśnānaprākṣītteṣāṃ naikaṃcanāśakaṃ vivaktumiti sa hovāca yathā mā tvaṃ tadaitānavado yathāhameṣāṃ naikaṃcana veda yadyahamimānavediṣyaṃ kathaṃ te nāvakṣyamiti || 5.3.5 ||
5. [Śvetaketu said:] ‘That friend of the princes put five questions to me. I was not able to answer a single one of them.’ [He then told his father the five questions. After pondering over them for some time, his father] said: ‘Those questions you told me about on your return from the court—I am not able to answer even one of them. If I knew the answers, why should I have not told you?’.
Word-for-word explanation:
Rājanyabandhuḥ, the friend of princes; pañca praśnān mā aprākṣīt, asked me five questions; teṣām na ekañcana aśakam vivaktum iti, I was not able to answer a single one of them; saḥ ha uvāca, he [his father] said; yathā mā tvam tadā, [on your return from the court] as you were then; etān, all these [questions]; avadaḥ, you told [me]; yathā, so; aham eṣām na ekañcana veda, I do not know even one of them; yadi aham imān avediṣyam, if I knew them; katham te na avakṣyam iti, why should I not have told you?
Commentary:
The word rājanyabandhuḥ, a friend of kings or princes, is not to be taken literally. Here the word is used sarcastically. Actually, the man is a rogue.