Shloka 11
Adhyaya 81 — Suratha and Samadhi Seek Sage Medhas; Introduction to Mahamaya and the Madhukaitabha Origin Account
सोऽचिन्तयत् तदा तत्र ममत्वाकृष्टचेतनः ।
मत्पूर्वैः पालितं पूर्वं मया हीनं पुरं हि तत् ।
मद्भृत्यैस्तै रसद्वृत्तैर्धर्मतः पालयते न वा ॥
so ’cintayat tadā tatra mamatvākṛṣṭa-cetanaḥ |
mat-pūrvaiḥ pālitaṃ pūrvaṃ mayā hīnaṃ puraṃ hi tat |
mad-bhṛtyais tair asad-vṛttair dharmataḥ pālyate na vā ||
Dort, vom besitzergreifenden Anhaften im Geist angezogen, dachte er: „Jene Stadt, die einst von meinen Ahnen und früher auch von mir beschützt wurde, ist nun ohne mich. Regieren meine Diener—von schlechter Gesinnung—sie gemäß dem Dharma oder nicht?“
FAQs
Even after losing everything, attachment persists; the verse diagnoses bondage as ‘mamatā’—the sense of ‘mine’ that drags the mind back into sorrow and anxiety.
Dharma-oriented ākhyāna within manvantara-set narrative: it introduces the human problem (attachment/delusion) that the Goddess teaching will resolve.
The ‘city’ can symbolize the body-mind complex once ‘ruled’ by discernment; when discernment is absent, lower tendencies (‘wicked servants’) may or may not uphold dharma—prompting the need for Devi’s awakening power.