Shloka 21

मान्धातृ-जन्म-चरितम्

The Birth and Career Account of Māndhātṛ

Devanagari script

महाबलो महावीर्यस्तपोबलसमन्वित: । य: शक्रमपि वीर्येण गमयेद्‌ यमसादनम्‌,“राजन! उक्त विधिसे इस जलको मैंने ऐसा शक्तिसम्पन्न कर दिया था कि इसको पीनेसे एक महाबली, महापराक्रमी और तपोबल सम्पन्न पुत्र उत्पन्न हो जो अपने बल- पराक्रमसे देवराज इन्द्रको भी यमलोक पहुँचा सके। उसी जलको तुमने आज पी लिया, यह अच्छा नहीं किया

Transliteration

mahābalo mahāvīryas tapobalasamanvitaḥ | yaḥ śakram api vīryeṇa gamayed yamasādanam ||

Translation

Lomaśa sprach: „O König, nach dem vorgeschriebenen Ritus hatte ich dieses Wasser mit Macht erfüllt, damit es, wenn man es trinkt, einen Sohn hervorbringe—gewaltig an Kraft, groß an Tapferkeit und erfüllt von der Stärke der Askese—einen, der durch seine Tüchtigkeit sogar Indra, den Herrn der Götter, in Yamas Reich senden könnte. Doch heute hast du eben dieses Wasser getrunken; du hast nicht recht gehandelt.“

Word by Word

• {'mahābalaḥ': 'very strong, of great might', 'mahāvīryaḥ': 'of great valor/heroic energy', 'tapo-bala-samanvitaḥ': 'endowed with the strength born of austerities', 'yaḥ': 'who', 'śakram': 'Śakra (Indra), lord of the gods', 'api': 'even', 'vīryeṇa': 'by valor/power', 'gamayet': 'would cause to go

• would send', 'yamasādanam': 'the abode/seat of Yama (realm of death)'}

Speaker

लोमश उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Lomaśa
• King (rājan)
• Śakra (Indra)
• Yama
• Yamasādana (abode of Yama)
• Empowered water (jalodaka)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Power gained through ritual and austerity carries ethical responsibility; taking what is consecrated for a specific dharmic purpose without due consideration is portrayed as a fault with serious consequences.

What is happening in the narrative?

Lomaśa explains to the king that a certain water had been ritually empowered to produce an extraordinarily powerful son; the king has unknowingly drunk it, and Lomaśa rebukes him for this improper act.