Shloka 8
Ādi Parva, Adhyāya 180 — Svayaṃvara-Virodha and Pāṇḍava Parākrama
Draupadī Episode
तान् भूगूणां यदा दारान् वक्रिन्नाभ्युपपद्यत । माता तदा दधारेयमूरुणैकेन मां शुभा,जब भार्गवोंकी पत्नियोंका कोई भी रक्षक नहीं मिला, तब मेरी इस कल्याणमयी माताने मुझे अपनी एक जाँघमें छिपाकर रखा था ततः परमदुष्प्रापमन्यैर्क्रषिरुदारधी: । समापिपयिषु: सत्र तमत्रि: समुपागमत् तदनन्तर दूसरोंके लिये उस यज्ञको बंद करना अत्यन्त कठिन जानकर उदारबुद्धि महर्षि अत्रि स्वयं उस यज्ञको समाप्त करानेकी इच्छासे पराशरके पास आये
tān bhṛgūṇāṃ yadā dārān rakṣitā nābhyupapadyata | mātā tadā dadhāreyam ūrūṇā ekena māṃ śubhā || tataḥ paramaduṣprāpam anyair ṛṣir udāradhīḥ | samāpipayiṣuḥ satraṃ tam atriḥ samupāgamat ||
Auruva said: “When no protector could be found for the wives of the Bhṛgus, my blessed mother hid me away in one of her thighs. Thereafter, realizing that it would be exceedingly difficult for others to bring that sacrificial session to a close, the noble-minded sage Atri came there, wishing to have that satra concluded.”
ऑर्व उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds dharma as protection: when social order fails to provide a guardian, a mother’s courageous, resourceful protection preserves lineage and life. It also highlights restraint in ritual power—great sages like Atri intervene to conclude a dangerous or unmanageable sacrificial undertaking rather than let it escalate.
Auruva recounts how, during a time when the Bhṛgu women lacked any protector, his mother concealed him in her thigh to save him. Then the sage Atri arrives, intending to bring a prolonged sacrificial session (satra) to its proper conclusion, recognizing that ending it would be extremely difficult for others.