Shloka 8
सगरोपाख्यानम् (Sagara-Upākhyāna): Śiva’s boon and the extraordinary birth of Sagara’s progeny
अथाभिजममुर्मुनिमा श्रमस्थं तपस्विनं धर्मभृतां वरिष्ठम् अगस्त्यमत्यद्भुतवीर्यवन्तं त॑ चार्थमूचु: सहिता: सुरास्ते,तब वे सब देवता मिलकर अपने आश्रमपर विराजमान धर्मात्माओंमें श्रेष्ठ तपस्वी अगस्त्य मुनिके पास गये, जो अद्भुत प्रभावशाली थे। वहाँ जाकर उन्होंने अपना प्रयोजन कह सुनाया
athābhijagmur munim āśramasthaṁ tapasvinaṁ dharmabhṛtāṁ variṣṭham | agastyam atyadbhuta-vīryavantaṁ taṁ cārtham ūcuḥ sahitāḥ surās te ||
Lomaśa said: Then those gods, assembled together, approached the sage Agastya—seated in his hermitage—an ascetic foremost among the upholders of dharma, endowed with wondrous power. Having reached him, they stated to him the purpose of their visit.
लोमश उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the Mahabharata’s ethic that spiritual authority grounded in tapas and dharma commands even divine respect: the gods themselves seek guidance from a sage who is foremost among dharma-bearers.
Lomaśa narrates that the assembled gods go to Agastya in his hermitage and, upon reaching him, present the purpose of their visit—setting up a request or consultation with the powerful ascetic.