Shloka 20
Parāśara’s Counsel on बुद्धि (Discernment), Karma-Consequences, and Avoidance of Pāpānubandha Actions
वृत्रस्तु कुरुशार्दूल महामायो महाबल: । मोहयामास देवेन्द्र मायायुद्धेन सर्वश:,कुरुश्रेष्ठ! महामायावी महाबली वृत्रासुरने सब ओरसे मायामय युद्ध छेड़कर देवराज इन्द्रको मोहमें डाल दिया। वृत्रासुरसे पीड़ित हुए इन्द्रपर मोह छा गया। तब वसिष्ठजीने रथन्तर सामद्वारा वहाँ इन्द्रको सचेत किया
vṛtras tu kuruśārdūla mahāmāyo mahābalaḥ | mohayāmāsa devendraṃ māyāyuddhena sarvaśaḥ ||
Bhīṣma sprach: „O Tiger unter den Kurus! Vṛtra, mächtig und Herr großer Täuschung, verwirrte Indra, den König der Götter, von allen Seiten durch einen Krieg der magischen Verblendung.“
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical danger of moha (bewilderment) produced by māyā (deceptive appearances): even the most powerful can lose discernment in conflict, so right action (dharma) requires clarity, vigilance, and often the corrective guidance of the wise.
Bhīṣma narrates that Vṛtra, endowed with great power and illusion, engages Indra in a deceptive, illusion-filled mode of battle and thereby confuses him on all sides, setting up the need for Indra’s reawakening through counsel (as the surrounding prose tradition notes).