Shloka 4
समुद्रवर्णनम् (Description of the Ocean) — Kadrū and Vinatā approach the sea
ततः पिबत्सु तत्काल देवेष्वमृतमीप्सितम् । राहुविबुधरूपेण दानव: प्रापिबत् तदा,जिस समय देवता उस अभीष्ट अमृतका पान कर रहे थे, ठीक उसी समय राहु नामक दानवने देवतारूपसे आकर अमृत पीना आरम्भ किया
tataḥ pibatṣu tatkāla deveṣv amṛtam īpsitam | rāhu-vibudha-rūpeṇa dānavaḥ prāpibat tadā ||
Da geschah es, in eben dem Augenblick, als die Götter den lang ersehnten Nektar der Unsterblichkeit tranken: Der Dānava namens Rāhu nahm die Gestalt eines Gottes an und begann ebenfalls zu trinken—ein Trug, genährt von Gier nach dem, was ihm nicht zustand.
शौनक उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how intense craving for power or immortality can lead to deception (adharma). It implicitly contrasts rightful participation (the devas receiving amṛta) with wrongful appropriation through disguise, underscoring that unethical means corrupt even a coveted goal.
As the gods begin drinking the amṛta, Rāhu—a Dānava—takes on the appearance of a god and starts drinking it too, attempting to secure immortality by infiltrating the divine assembly.