Shloka 26
वंशानुकीर्तनम् — Genealogical Recitation from Dakṣa to Yayāti and the Establishment of the Paurava Line
पुण्यस्वाध्यायसंघुष्टां पुलिनैरुपशोभिताम् । मत्तवारणशार्दूलभुजगेन्द्रनिषेविताम्,अनेक सुन्दर पुलिन मालिनीकी शोभा बढ़ा रहे थे। वेद-शास्त्रोंके पवित्र स्वाध्यायकी ध्वनिसे उस सरिताका निकटवर्ती प्रदेश गूँज रहा था। मतवाले हाथी, सिंह और बड़े-बड़े सर्प भी मालिनीके तटका आश्रय लेकर रहते थे
puṇya-svādhyāya-saṅghuṣṭāṁ pulinair upaśobhitām | matta-vāraṇa-śārdūla-bhujagendra-niṣevitām ||
Vaiśaṃpāyana said: The river-bank region resounded with the sacred recitation of the Vedas and the śāstras, and its beauty was heightened by many lovely sandbanks. Even intoxicated elephants, tigers, and great serpent-lords frequented and took shelter along the banks of the Mālinī—showing a landscape where sanctity, learning, and untamed nature coexist in a charged yet harmonious order.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the sanctifying power of svādhyāya (sacred study/recitation): a place becomes ‘puṇya’ not merely by geography but by sustained learning and disciplined life. It also implies an ethical ideal of coexistence—human spiritual practice does not necessarily oppose the wild; rather, it can create an ordered space where even powerful creatures are present without disrupting the sacred atmosphere.
Vaiśaṃpāyana describes a river region—identified in context as the Mālinī—whose banks are beautiful with sandbars and whose surroundings echo with Vedic recitation. The scene is vivid and pastoral, yet also formidable: elephants, tigers, and great serpents inhabit the same riverbanks, emphasizing both the richness and the awe-inspiring danger of the forest landscape.