Shloka 5
भूमिभार-निवारणप्रसङ्गः (Bhūmibhāra-nivāraṇa-prasaṅgaḥ) — The Motif of Relieving Earth’s Burden
सौतिरु्वाच तमिन्द्रहस्ताद वित्रस्तं विसंज्ञं पन्नगोत्तमम् । आस्तीकस्तिष्ठ तिछेति वाचस्तिस्रो5 भ्युदैरयत्,उग्रश्रवाजीने कहा--शौनक! इन्द्रके हाथसे छूटनेपर नागप्रवर तक्षक भयसे थर्रा उठा। उसकी चेतना लुप्त हो गयी। उस समय आस्तीकने उसे लक्ष्य करके तीन बार इस प्रकार कहा--*ठहर जा, ठहर जा, ठहर जा”
śaunaka uvāca — sūtīr uvāca: tam indrahastād vitrastaṁ visaṁjñaṁ pannagottamam | āstīkas tiṣṭha tiṣṭheti vācas tisro ’bhyudairayat ||
Sūta said: When Takṣaka, foremost of serpents, slipped from Indra’s hand, he trembled with fear and fell senseless. Then Āstīka, fixing his mind upon him, uttered three times the words, “Stay! Stay! Stay!”—restraining him at the critical moment.
शौनक उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the moral potency of timely, purposeful speech: a righteous intervention can restrain violence and redirect events, even when fear and momentum are at their peak.
Takṣaka, the chief serpent, slips from Indra’s grasp and becomes terrified and senseless; Āstīka then addresses him directly, repeating “tiṣṭha” three times to stop and restrain him at that decisive moment.