Shloka 3
Sarasvatī-Śāpavimokṣa, Rākṣasa-Mokṣa, and Aruṇā-Tīrtha
Indra–Namuci Expiation
जनमेजयने पूछा--प्रभो! वसिष्ठापवाह तीर्थमें सरस्वतीके जलका भयंकर वेग कैसे हुआ? सरिताओंमें श्रेष्ठ सरस्वतीने उन महर्षिको किस लिये बहाया? उनके साथ उसका वैर कैसे हुआ? उस वैरका कारण क्या है? महामते! मैंने जो पूछा है, वह बताइये। मैं आपके वचनोंको सुनते-सुनते तृप्त नहीं होता हूँ ।। वैशम्पायन उवाच विश्वामित्रस्य विप्रर्षेवसिष्ठस्य च भारत । भृशं वैरमभूद् राजंस्तप:स्पर्धाकृतं महत्,वैशम्पायनजीने कहा--भारत! तपस्यामें होड़ लग जानेके कारण विश्वामित्र तथा ब्रह्मर्षि वसिष्ठमें बड़ा भारी वैर हो गया था
vaiśampāyana uvāca |
viśvāmitrasya viprarṣe vasiṣṭhasya ca bhārata |
bhṛśaṃ vairam abhūd rājan tapaḥ-spardhā-kṛtaṃ mahat ||
Janamejaya asked: “Lord, at the sacred ford called Vasiṣṭhāpavāha, how did the waters of Sarasvatī come to surge with such dreadful force? And why did Sarasvatī—foremost among rivers—sweep that great ṛṣi away? How did enmity arise between them, and what was its cause? O man of profound understanding, tell me what I ask; I never grow sated as I listen to your words.” Vaiśampāyana said: “O Bhārata (Janamejaya), through rivalry in austerities, there arose a great and fierce enmity between Viśvāmitra—the seer among Brahmins—and Vasiṣṭha, the Brahmarṣi.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Austerity (tapas) is spiritually potent, but when driven by rivalry (spardhā) it can degenerate into hostility (vaira). The verse cautions that spiritual practice should be guided by humility and dharma, not competition.
Vaiśampāyana begins explaining the background to Janamejaya’s query by stating that a great enmity arose between the sages Viśvāmitra and Vasiṣṭha due to competition in austerities—setting up the cause for later events connected with the Sarasvatī and the sages.