Shloka 11
Kārttikeya-Abhiṣecana: Mātṛgaṇa-Nāma Saṃkīrtana and Skanda’s Commission
ऋतवश्न ग्रहाश्षैव ज्योतींषि च विशाम्पते । मूर्तिमत्यश्न सरितो वेदाश्वैव सनातना:
ṛtavaś ca grahāś caiva jyotīṃṣi ca viśāṃpate | mūrtimatyas tathā sarito vedāś caiva sanātanāḥ || rudrair vasubhir ādityair aśvibhyāṃ ca vṛtaḥ prabhuḥ | mahāparākramī skandaḥ sarvaiḥ samantataḥ sthitaḥ ||
Vaiśaṃpāyana said: “O lord of the people, the seasons and the planets, and the heavenly lights as well; the embodied rivers and the eternal, living Vedas—all of these came. Surrounded by the Rudras, the Vasus, the Ādityas, and the two Aśvins, the mighty Lord Skanda (Kārttikeya) stood encircled on every side. The passage presents a cosmic assembly: time, nature, sacred revelation, and the gods themselves gather to honor and attend the divine commander, suggesting that righteous power is not merely martial force but is upheld by the order of the universe (ṛta/dharma) and by sacred authority (veda).”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames true power as aligned with cosmic order: time (seasons), destiny/time-markers (planets), nature (rivers), and revelation (the eternal Vedas) all converge around Skanda. Martial authority is legitimized when it is supported by dharma/ṛta and by sacred tradition, not merely by force.
A grand, cosmic gathering is described: personified forces of time and nature, along with major classes of gods (Rudras, Vasus, Ādityas, and the Aśvin twins), assemble and stand around Skanda/Kārttikeya, honoring him as a central divine figure in the scene.