Shloka 29
Śukra’s Ultimatum and Devayānī’s Demand (शुक्र-प्रतिज्ञा तथा देवयानी-वर-याचना)
पशुवच्चैव तान् पृष्ठे वाहयामास वीर्यवान् । कारयामास चेन्द्रत्वमभिभूय दिवौकस:,अपने इन्द्रत्वकालमें पराक्रमी नहुषने महर्षियोंको पशुकी तरह वाहन बनाकर उनकी पीठपर सवारी की थी। उन्होंने तेज, तप, ओज और पराक्रमद्वारा समस्त देवताओंको तिरस्कृत करके इन्द्रपदका उपभोग किया था। राजा नहुषने छ: प्रियवादी पुत्रोंको जन्म दिया, जिनके नाम इस प्रकार हैं--यति, ययाति, संयाति, आयाति, अयति और ध्रुव। इनमें यति योगका आश्रय लेकर ब्रह्मभूत मुनि हो गये थे
vaiśampāyana uvāca | paśuvac caiva tān pṛṣṭhe vāhayāmāsa vīryavān | kārayāmāsa cendratvam abhibhūya divaukasaḥ ||
Vaiśampāyana said: In the time when he held Indra’s sovereignty, the mighty Nahusha made the great seers carry him on their backs like beasts of burden. Overpowering the dwellers of heaven, he caused himself to enjoy the status of Indra—an episode that underscores how arrogance born of power can turn sacred authority into oppression and invite moral downfall.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Power and status, even when divinely obtained, become adharma when used to humiliate the virtuous; Nahusha’s forcing seers to serve as beasts illustrates how pride corrupts authority and sets the stage for inevitable downfall.
During Nahusha’s tenure in Indra’s position, he subdues the gods and compels the great sages to carry him on their backs, treating them like animals—an act of overreach that marks his moral decline.