Shloka 35

Devanagari script

तद्‌ रेत: स तु जग्राह कलशे वै महातपा: । सप्तधा प्रविभागं तु कलशस्थं जगाम ह,महातपस्वी मुनिने उस वीर्यको एक कलशमें ले लिया। कलशमें स्थित होनेपर वह वीर्य सात भागोंमें विभक्त हो गया

Transliteration

tad retaḥ sa tu jagrāha kalaśe vai mahātapāḥ | saptadhā pravibhāgaṃ tu kalaśasthaṃ jagāma ha |

Translation

Vaiśaṃpāyana said: “The great ascetic collected that semen in a jar. Once contained in the jar, it separated into seven distinct portions.”

Word by Word

तत्that (seed/energy)

रेतःsemen, seed, potency

सःhe

तुbut, indeed

जग्राहtook, seized, received

कलशेin a pot, in a vessel

वैindeed, surely

महातपाःthe great ascetic

सप्तधाsevenfold, into seven parts

प्रविभागम्division, distribution

तुand/but (emphatic)

कलशस्थम्situated in the pot

जगामwent, came to be, became

हindeed (particle)

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśaṃpāyana

mahātapāḥ (a great ascetic)

kalaśa (jar/pitcher)

retaḥ (semen)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights restraint and intentionality in dealing with powerful life-generating forces: through tapas (austerity) and disciplined action, potency is contained, preserved, and directed rather than wasted or driven by impulse.

What is happening in the narrative?

An ascetic gathers semen into a jar; once placed there, it miraculously becomes divided into seven portions, setting up a subsequent development involving multiple outcomes or births from a single preserved essence.