Shloka 23
Udyoga Parva, Adhyaya 104: Nārada on Suhṛt and Nirbandha; the Viśvāmitra–Gālava Exemplum Begins
यावान् हि भार: कृत्स्नाया: पृथिव्या: पर्वत: सह । एकस्या देहशाखायास्तावद् भारममन्यत,पर्वतोंसहित सम्पूर्ण पृथ्वीका जितना भार हो सकता है, उतना ही उस एक बाँहका भार है, यह गरुड़को अनुभव हुआ
yāvān hi bhāraḥ kṛtsnāyāḥ pṛthivyāḥ parvataḥ saha | ekasyā dehaśākhāyās tāvad bhāram amanyata ||
Kaṇva sprach: „So schwer die ganze Erde mitsamt ihren Bergen auch sein mag—Garuḍa empfand, dass das Gewicht nur eines einzigen, einem Ast gleichenden Gliedes jenes Leibes ihm ebenbürtig war.“ Der Vers betont die Grenze der Kraft angesichts einer höheren, göttlich gefügten Macht.
कण्व उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even extraordinary power meets its limit before a higher order; the comparison teaches humility and the recognition that embodied burdens can be vast, compelling reverence for dharma and the forces that sustain the world.
Kaṇva narrates Garuḍa’s experience: Garuḍa perceives a single limb (likened to a branch) to be as heavy as the whole earth with its mountains, highlighting an encounter with an immense, awe-inspiring burden.