Shloka 5
Rāma–Jāmadagnya-janma-kāraṇa and Kṣatra-kṣaya
Paraśurāma’s origins and the depletion/restoration of kṣatriya lineages
तमुग्रतपसं दृष्टवा सहस्राक्ष: पुरंदर: । समर्थ पुत्रजनने स्वयमेवान्वपद्यत
tam ugratapasaṃ dṛṣṭvā sahasrākṣaḥ puraṃdaraḥ | samarthaḥ putrajanane svayam evānvapadyata ||
Seeing the sage engaged in fierce austerities, Purandara—Indra of a thousand eyes, lord of the guardians of the worlds—recognized that he was capable of begetting a powerful son. Therefore Indra himself entered into him and took birth as his son. O King, that son of Kuśika became renowned by the name Gādhi.
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
Intense tapas (austerity) is portrayed as spiritually efficacious: it can draw divine participation and yield extraordinary outcomes, such as the birth of an exceptional son. The passage also implies that power and virtue in lineage are connected to disciplined self-restraint and merit.
Vāyudeva explains that Indra, impressed by a sage’s formidable austerities and his capacity to beget a mighty son, voluntarily incarnated as that sage’s son. The child born in Kuśika’s line became famous as Gādhi.