Srimad Bhagavatam — Shashtha Skandha, Shloka 72
Diti’s Puṁsavana Vow, Indra’s Intervention, and the Birth of the Maruts
कृत्तो मे सप्तधा गर्भ आसन् सप्त कुमारका: । तेऽपि चैकैकशो वृक्णा: सप्तधा नापि मम्रिरे ॥ ७२ ॥
kṛtto me saptadhā garbha āsan sapta kumārakāḥ te ’pi caikaikaśo vṛkṇāḥ saptadhā nāpi mamrire
First I cut the child in the womb into seven pieces, which became seven children. Then I cut each of the children into seven pieces again. By the grace of the Supreme Lord, however, none of them died.
FAQs
This verse states that even after Diti’s embryo was repeatedly cut—first into seven, then each into seven more—the children did not die, indicating the extraordinary destiny of the Maruts and the divine arrangement behind their birth.
In this chapter’s story, Indra feared that Diti’s son might become a powerful enemy of the devas; entering her womb, he attempted to prevent that outcome by cutting the embryo—yet the result became the Maruts.
It highlights that outcomes are not always controlled by fear-driven actions; higher providence can transform even hostile intentions into a different destiny, encouraging humility, restraint, and trust in divine arrangement.