Shloka 24
वंशानुकीर्तनम् — Genealogical Recitation from Dakṣa to Yayāti and the Establishment of the Paurava Line
नदीं चाश्रमसंश्लिष्टां पुण्यतोयां ददर्श सः । सर्वप्राणभूतां तत्र जननीमिव घिछिताम्,राजाने आश्रमसे सटकर बहनेवाली पुण्यसलिला मालिनी नदीकी ओर भी दृष्टिपात किया; जो वहाँ समस्त प्राणियोंकी जननी-सी विराज रही थी
nadīṃ cāśramasaṃśliṣṭāṃ puṇyatoyāṃ dadarśa saḥ | sarvaprāṇabhūtāṃ tatra jananīm iva śobhitām ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “He then beheld a river whose course lay close to the hermitage, its waters holy and life-giving. There it shone like a mother to all living beings—nurturing, sustaining, and sanctifying the ascetic landscape around it.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames nature—especially a sacred river—as ethically significant: purity, sustenance, and protection are seen as maternal qualities that support dharmic life in the hermitage. The environment is not merely scenery but a participant in spiritual discipline and the welfare of all beings.
A traveler (referred to simply as 'he') arrives near an āśrama and notices a holy river flowing close by. The river is described as radiant and mother-like to all creatures, emphasizing the hermitage setting and its life-sustaining sacred landscape.