Shloka 20
Adhyāya 290: Kuntī’s Mantra-Parīkṣā and the Appearance of Sūrya (कुन्ती–सूर्यसंवादः)
अन्तर्हितं विदित्वा तं बहुमायं च राक्षसम्
antarhitaṃ viditvā taṃ bahumāyaṃ ca rākṣasam
Als er erkannte, dass jener dem Blick entschwunden war, und ihn als einen rākṣasa verstand, der vielerlei trügerische Künste beherrscht, deutet Mārkaṇḍeya den Augenblick als Mahnung zu Wachsamkeit und Unterscheidung: Verbirgt sich das Böse hinter Illusion, muss man zuerst den Schleier durchschauen, ehe man gemäß dem Dharma handelt.
मार्कण्डेय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights viveka (discernment): when confronted with concealed wrongdoing and illusion, ethical action begins with correctly recognizing the nature of the threat—seeing through māyā rather than reacting blindly.
Mārkaṇḍeya notes that the figure has become hidden and identifies him as a rākṣasa endowed with many deceptive powers, setting up the next response to an unseen, illusion-using adversary.