Shloka 24
Tīrtha-Sevana and the Cursed Apsaras
Grāha-Encounter at Saubhadra Tīrtha
7, युन्दोपयुन्दावूचत॒ः त्रिषु लोकेषु यद् भूतं॑ किंचित् स्थावरजड्भमम् । सर्वस्मान्नो भयं न स्यादृतेडन्योन्यं पितामह,सुन्द और उपसुन्द बोले--पितामह! तब यह वर दीजिये कि हम दोनोंमेंसे एक- दूसरेको छोड़कर तीनों लोकोंमें जो कोई भी चर या अचर भूत हैं, उनसे हमें मृत्युका भय न हो
Nārada uvāca: sundopasundāv ūcatuḥ—triṣu lokeṣu yad bhūtaṃ kiñcit sthāvara-jaṅgamam | sarvasmān no bhayaṃ na syād ṛte ’nyonyaṃ pitāmaha ||
Sunda and Upasunda said: “O Grandsire (Brahmā), grant us this boon: that in the three worlds, from any being whatsoever—moving or unmoving—we shall have no fear of death, except from one another.”
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
A boon sought with a loophole reveals moral blindness: trying to secure power by excluding all external threats still leaves inner conflict as the decisive danger. The verse highlights how unchecked ambition and mutual rivalry can become one’s only true vulnerability.
In Narada’s account, the brothers Sunda and Upasunda approach Brahmā (Pitāmaha) and request near-total immunity: they ask to be free from fear of death from any being in the three worlds, with the single exception that they may be harmed by each other.