Shloka 3
Nahūṣa’s Fall Explained: Agastya’s Account to Indra (Śalya-narrated)
विश्वरूपविनाशेन वृत्रासुरवधेन च । दिष्ट्याद्य नहुषो भ्रष्टो देवराज्यात् पुरंदर । दिष्ट्या हतारिं पश्यामि भवन्तं बलसूदन
viśvarūpavināśena vṛtrāsuravadhena ca | diṣṭyādya nahuṣo bhraṣṭo devarājyāt puraṃdara | diṣṭyā hatāriṃ paśyāmi bhavantaṃ balasūdana ||
Śalya said: “By good fortune, through the destruction of Viśvarūpa and the slaying of Vṛtrāsura you have continued to rise in power and success. O Purandara, it is also a blessing that today Nahuṣa has fallen from the sovereignty of the gods. O slayer of Bala, by fortune I behold you now as one whose enemies have been brought down.”
शल्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames political and cosmic stability as dependent on the rightful holder of authority: when disruptive claimants (like Nahuṣa) are removed and threats are subdued, order is restored. It also highlights the Mahābhārata’s recurrent theme that success and downfall are often spoken of as ‘diṣṭyā’—as outcomes aligned with a larger moral-cosmic dispensation.
Śalya recounts a divine episode: Indra, celebrated for earlier victories (over Viśvarūpa and Vṛtra), is now fortunate to see Nahuṣa expelled from the gods’ sovereignty. The speech functions as praise of Indra’s restored security and the reestablishment of divine kingship.