Shloka 12
इन्द्रस्य दुःखप्राप्तिः—त्रिशिरोवधः, वृत्रोत्पत्तिः, जृम्भिकाजननम्
Indra’s Distress: Slaying of Triśiras, Birth of Vṛtra, and the Origin of Yawning
प्रलोभयत भद्ठे व: शमयध्वं भयं मम । अस्वस्थं हात्मना55त्मानं लक्षयामि वराड़ना: । भयं तन्मे महाघोरें क्षिप्रं नाशयताबला:,'सुन्दरियो! तुम सब शृंगारके अनुरूप वेष धारण करके मनोहर हारोंसे विभूषित, हाव- भावसे संयुक्त तथा सौन्दर्यसे सुशोभित हो विश्वरूपको लुभाओ। तुम्हारा कल्याण हो, मेरे भयको शान्त करो। वरांगनाओ! मैं अपने आपको अस्वस्थचित्त देख रहा हूँ, अतः अबलाओ! तुम मेरे इस अत्यन्त घोर भयका शीघ्र निवारण करो”
śalya uvāca | pralobhayata bhadre vaḥ śamayadhvaṁ bhayaṁ mama | asvasthaṁ hātmanātmānaṁ lakṣayāmi varāṅganāḥ | bhayaṁ tan me mahāghoraṁ kṣipraṁ nāśayatābalāḥ ||
Śalya said: “O auspicious ladies, entice him; calm my fear. I perceive my own mind to be unsettled within myself, O fair women. Therefore, O delicate ones, quickly remove this exceedingly dreadful fear of mine.”
शल्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how fear and inner unrest can drive a person toward expedient, emotion-based strategies (allurement and persuasion) rather than calm deliberation. Ethically, it points to the tension between dharmic restraint and pragmatic manipulation when one feels threatened.
Śalya addresses a group of women, urging them to use charm to win someone over and thereby soothe his intense fear. He confesses that he feels mentally unsettled and asks them to quickly dispel his dread through their intervention.