Shloka 88
Śiva-stavarāja: Upamanyu’s Preface and Initiation of the Śarva-Nāma Enumeration
Anuśāsana-parva 17
लम्बनो लम्बितोष्ठ क्ष महामाय: पयोनिधि: । महादन्तो महादंष्टो महाजिह्दो महामुख:,४७८ लम्बन:--अनेक ब्रह्माण्डोंके आश्रय, ४७९ लम्बितोष्ठ:--प्रलयकालमें सम्पूर्ण विश्वको अपना ग्रास बनानेके लिये ओठोंको फैलाये रखनेवाले, ४८० महामाय:-- महामायावी, ४८१ पयोनिधि:--क्षीरसागररूप, ४८२ महादन्त:--बड़े-बड़े दाँतवाले, ४८३ महादंष्ट:--बड़ी-बड़ी दाढ़वाले, ४८४ महाजिद्द:--विशाल जिह्दावाले, ४८५ महामुख:--बहुत बड़े मुखवाले
lambano lambitoṣṭhaḥ kṣa mahāmāyaḥ payonidhiḥ | mahādanto mahādaṁṣṭro mahājihvo mahāmukhaḥ ||
Vāyu-deva said: “He is the Support of countless cosmic spheres; with lips stretched wide to swallow the whole universe at the time of dissolution; the Great Enchanter; the Ocean of Milk itself; possessed of mighty teeth and massive fangs; with a vast tongue and an immense mouth.”
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches reverent recognition of the Divine as both sustainer and dissolver of the cosmos. By contemplating these vast, even fearsome, attributes, one cultivates humility and aligns oneself with dharma—the larger cosmic order beyond personal power.
Vāyu-deva is reciting a praise-description (stuti) of the Supreme Lord, listing awe-inspiring epithets that portray the Lord’s cosmic form and powers—especially the capacity to encompass and reabsorb the universe at the time of pralaya.