Shloka 1
Udyoga Parva, Adhyāya 101: Bhogavatī-varṇana, Nāga-vaṃśa-kathana, and Sumukha-vivāha-prastāva
इस प्रकार श्रीमहाभारत उद्योगपर्वके अन्तर्गत भगवद्यानपर्वमें मातलिके द्वारा वरका खोजविषयक एक सौ एकवाँ अध्याय पूरा हुआ ॥/ १०९ ॥/ अपना बछ। 2 द्र्याधेकशततमो< ध्याय: सुरभि और उसकी 80005 कक रसातलके सुखका व नारद उवाच इदं रसातलं नाम सप्तमं पृथिवीतलम् । यत्रास्ते सुरभिर्माता गवाममृतसम्भवा,नारदजी बोले--मातले! यह पृथ्वीका सातवाँ तल है, जिसका नाम रसातल है। यहाँ अमृतसे उत्पन्न हुई गोमाता सुरभि निवास करती हैं
nārada uvāca | idaṃ rasātalaṃ nāma saptamaṃ pṛthivītalam | yatrāste surabhī mātā gavām amṛtasambhavā ||
Narada said: “This is the seventh stratum of the earth, called Rasātala. Here dwells Surabhī, the Mother of cows, born from nectar (amṛta).”
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames Surabhī—source and protector of cattle—as a sacred, divinely originated being, reinforcing the dharmic valuation of cows and the moral duty of protection and reverence toward life-sustaining creatures.
Narada identifies the location as Rasātala, the seventh subterranean level, and points out that Surabhī, the divine mother of cows, resides there—setting the scene for the episode connected with the search and encounter in the netherworld.