Shloka 62
Nāga-āyatana-darśana-pratīkṣā — The Brāhmaṇa’s Request and Waiting on the Gomatī
शेषाश्व विबुधश्रेष्ठा दैत्यदानवराक्षसा: । नागा: सुपर्णा गन्धर्वा: सिद्धा राजर्षयश्न ये,वे अंगोंसहित सम्पूर्ण वेदोंकी आवृत्ति करते हुए अत्यन्त कठोर तपस्यामें संलग्न हैं। ब्रह्मा, स्वयं महादेव, सम्पूर्ण ऋषि और शेष, श्रेष्ठ देवता तथा दैत्य, दानव, राक्षस, नाग, गरुड, गन्धर्व, सिद्ध एवं राजर्षिगण सदा विधिपूर्वक जो हव्य और कव्य अर्पण करते हैं, वह सब कुछ उन्हीं भगवानके चरणोंमें उपस्थित होता है
nārada uvāca | śeṣāśvā vibudhaśreṣṭhā daityadānavarākṣasāḥ | nāgāḥ suparṇā gandharvāḥ siddhā rājarṣayaś ca ye | te ’ṅgaiḥ sahitāḥ sampūrṇā vedānām āvṛttiṃ kurvanto ’tyantaṃ kaṭhora-tapasyāṃ saṃlagnāḥ santi | brahmā svayaṃ mahādevaḥ samastā ṛṣayaḥ śeṣaś ca śreṣṭhā devatāś ca daityā dānavā rākṣasā nāgā garuḍā gandharvāḥ siddhā rājarṣayaś ca sadā vidhipūrvakaṃ yat havyaṃ kavyaṃ cārpayanti tat sarvaṃ tasya bhagavataḥ caraṇeṣu samupasthitam bhavati |
Narada said: “Even the foremost beings—Śeṣa and the celestial horses, the best of the gods, as well as Daityas, Dānavas, and Rākṣasas; Nāgas, Suparṇas (Garuḍa-kind), Gandharvas, Siddhas, and royal seers—engage in exceedingly austere tapas while continually reciting the Vedas in full, with all their limbs and auxiliaries. Whatever offerings of havya (for the gods) and kavya (for the ancestors) are duly presented—by Brahmā, by Mahādeva himself, by all the Ṛṣis, by Śeṣa, and by these various orders of beings—everything ultimately comes to rest at the feet of that Supreme Lord. The ethical thrust is that disciplined practice, Vedic learning, and ritual merit find their true completion only when oriented toward the highest divine refuge.”
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
All spiritual disciplines—Vedic study, recitation with the Vedāṅgas, austerity, and properly performed offerings—reach their true fulfillment when dedicated to the Supreme Lord; merit is ultimately gathered at the divine feet.
Narada describes a vast range of beings, from gods and sages to nāgas and rākṣasas, engaged in severe tapas and Vedic recitation, and explains that the havya and kavya they offer according to ritual rule ultimately arrive before the Supreme Lord.