Shloka 13
मेरोर्दिग्वर्णनम् / Digvarṇana of Meru: Uttara-Kuru, Bhadrāśva, and Jambūdvīpa Motifs
पद्मपत्रसुगन्धाश्न जायन्ते तत्र मानवाः | अनिष्यन्दा इष्टगन्धा निराहारा जितेन्द्रिया:,वहाँके मनुष्योंके शरीरसे विकसित कमलदलोंके समान सुगन्ध प्रकट होती है। उनके शरीरसे पसीने नहीं निकलते। उनकी सुगन्ध प्रिय लगती है। वे आहार (भूख-प्याससे)- रहित और जितेन्द्रिय होते हैं
padmapatra-sugandhāś ca jāyante tatra mānavāḥ | aniṣyandā iṣṭa-gandhā nirāhārā jitendriyāḥ ||
Sañjaya said: In that realm, human beings are born with a fragrance like that of fully blossomed lotus petals. They do not perspire; their scent is naturally pleasing. Free from the compulsion of hunger and thirst, they live with their senses mastered—signs of a purified, disciplined mode of existence rather than bodily striving.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse presents sensory mastery (jitendriyatva) and freedom from bodily compulsion (nirāhāratva) as marks of a refined, dharmic state of being. Pleasant fragrance and absence of sweat function as symbolic indicators of inner purity and disciplined living.
Sañjaya is describing the qualities of beings in a particular exalted realm: they are naturally fragrant like lotus petals, do not perspire, and live without the ordinary pressures of hunger and thirst, characterized by strong self-restraint.