Shloka 19

Yudhiṣṭhira’s Lament and Kṛṣṇa’s Rudra-Cosmogony Explanation (सौप्तिक पर्व, अध्याय १७)

Devanagari script

विह्तितान्ना: प्रजास्तास्तु जग्मु: सृष्टा यथागतम्‌ | ततो ववृधिरे राजन्‌ प्रीतिमत्य: स्वयोनिषु,जिनकी सृष्टि हुई थी, उनके लिये जब भोजनकी व्यवस्था कर दी गयी, तब वे प्रजावर्गके लोग जैसे आये थे, वैसे लौट गये। राजन्‌! तदनन्तर सारी प्रजा अपनी ही योनियोंमें प्रसन्नतापूर्वक रहती हुई उत्तरोत्तर बढ़ने लगी

Transliteration

vihitānnāḥ prajāstāstu jagmuḥ sṛṣṭā yathāgatam | tato vavṛdhire rājan prītimatyaḥ svayoniṣu ||

Translation

Vaiśampāyana said: When provisions of food had been arranged for those beings who had been created, they departed, returning just as they had come. Then, O king, the whole populace—content within their own respective species—began to flourish and multiply ever more.

Word by Word

• [{'term': 'vihitānnāḥ', 'definition': 'those for whom food/provisions have been duly arranged (vihita + anna)'}, {'term': 'prajāḥ', 'definition': 'creatures

• populace'}, {'term': 'jagmuḥ', 'definition': 'they went

• they departed (perfect of √gam)'}, {'term': 'sṛṣṭāḥ', 'definition': 'created

• brought forth (from √sṛj)'}, {'term': 'yathāgatam', 'definition': 'as they had come

• in the same manner as their arrival'}, {'term': 'tataḥ', 'definition': 'then

• thereafter'}, {'term': 'vavṛdhire', 'definition': 'they grew

• they prospered (perfect of √vṛdh)'}, {'term': 'rājan', 'definition': 'O King (vocative address)'}, {'term': 'prītimatyaḥ', 'definition': 'contented

• satisfied'}, {'term': 'svayoniṣu', 'definition': 'in their own wombs/species/origins

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• rājan (the King, i.e., Janamejaya as listener)
• prajāḥ (created beings/subjects)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights a basic principle of righteous order: when beings are properly provided for (especially with food, the foundation of life), society settles into stability and naturally prospers. Welfare and sustenance are presented as prerequisites for growth and continuity.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana narrates that after food was arranged for the created beings/people, they dispersed peacefully, returning as they had come. Thereafter, the populace lived contentedly within their respective kinds and increased in number.