Shloka 17
अलायुधस्य भीमवधसंकल्पः
Alāyudha’s Resolve to Confront Bhīma
एकार्णवमिदं पूर्व सर्वमासीत् तमोमयम् | त्वत्प्रसादान्महाबाहो जगत् प्राप्तं नरोत्तम,“महाबाहो! नरश्रेष्ठ] पहले यह सारा जगत् एकार्णवके जलमें निमग्न हो अन्धकारमें विलीन हो गया था। फिर आपकी ही कृपादृष्टिसे यह वर्तमान रूपमें उपलब्ध हुआ है
ekārṇavam idaṃ pūrvaṃ sarvam āsīt tamomayam | tvatprasādān mahābāho jagat prāptaṃ narottama ||
Sañjaya said: “In the beginning, all this was a single ocean, submerged and made of darkness. By your gracious favor, O mighty-armed one, O best of men, the world has attained its present, manifest form.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames cosmic order as arising from the grace (prasāda) of a supreme or exemplary person: from undifferentiated darkness and inundation to a manifest, intelligible world. Ethically, it elevates humility and gratitude, implying that rightful power should be exercised as beneficent, world-sustaining favor rather than mere domination.
Sañjaya speaks in praise to the addressed hero/king, using a cosmogonic image: once everything was submerged in a single dark ocean, but through ‘your grace’ the world became available in its present form. The statement functions as exaltation—attributing restorative, ordering power to the addressee.