Shloka 60

Śiva-stavarāja: Upamanyu’s Preface and Initiation of the Śarva-Nāma Enumeration

Anuśāsana-parva 17

Devanagari script

विमोचन: सुसरणो हिरण्यकवचोद्धव: । मेढ्रजो बलचारी च महीचारी ख्रुतस्तथा,२५० विमोचन:--संसार-बन्धनसे छुड़ानेवाले, २५१ सुसरण:--श्रेष्ठ आश्रय, २५२ हिरण्य-कवचोद्धव:--हिरण्यगर्भकी उत्पत्तिका स्थान, २५३ मेढ़्ज:--, २५४ बलचारी --बलका संचार करनेवाले, २५५ महीचारी--सारी पृथ्वीपर विचरनेवाले, २५६ ख्रुत:-- सर्वत्र पहुँचे हुए

Transliteration

vimocanaḥ susaraṇo hiraṇyakavacoddhavaḥ | meḍhrajo balacārī ca mahīcārī khrutastathā ||

Translation

Vāyu-deva said: “(He is) Vimocana, the Liberator; Susaraṇa, the excellent refuge; Hiraṇyakavacoddhava, the source from which the golden-armoured (cosmic principle) arises; Meḍhraja; Balacārī, the mover and distributor of strength; Mahīcārī, the one who ranges over the whole earth; and Khruta, the all-pervading.”

Word by Word

• [{'term': 'vimocanaḥ', 'definition': '‘Liberator’

• one who releases (from bondage, especially saṃsāra or constraints).'}, {'term': 'susaraṇaḥ', 'definition': '‘Excellent refuge/shelter’

• a supreme resort or protector.'}, {'term': 'hiraṇya-kavaca-uddhavaḥ', 'definition': '‘From whom the golden armour arises’

• an epithet suggesting a cosmic source/origin (uddhava/udbhava = origin).'}, {'term': 'meḍhrajaḥ', 'definition': 'A name/epithet

• literally ‘born of/connected with meḍhra (generative organ)’, often implying generative potency or vital force (exact nuance depends on tradition).'}, {'term': 'balacārī', 'definition': '‘Mover/agent of strength’

• one who circulates, impels, or conveys bala (strength, vigor).'}, {'term': 'mahīcārī', 'definition': '‘Earth-roamer’

• one who moves throughout the earth/world.'}, {'term': 'khrutaḥ', 'definition': 'An epithet glossed in the provided note as ‘present everywhere / all-reaching’ (sarvatra pahũce hue).'}]

Speaker

वायुदेव उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vāyu (Vāyudeva)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse teaches devotion through recognizing the divine as (1) the liberator from bondage, (2) the supreme refuge, and (3) the cosmic power that sustains vitality and pervades the world—encouraging ethical steadiness grounded in reliance on that higher support.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vāyu-deva is speaking and reciting a sequence of honorific names/epithets. The passage functions like a litany, praising the deity’s liberating, protective, world-pervading, and strength-bestowing aspects.