Shloka 17
Akṛtavraṇa’s Account Begins: Gādhi–Satyavatī–Ṛcīka and the Bhārgava Lineage Prelude
भगवन् भूतरक्षार्थमर्जुनं जहि वै प्रभो । विमानेन च दिव्येन हैहयाधिपति: प्रभु: १६ ।। शचीसहायं क्रीडन्तं धर्षषामास वासवम् | ततस्तु भगवान् देव: शक्रेण सहितस्तदा । कार्तवीर्यविनाशार्थ मन्त्रयामास भारत,कार्तवीर्यका ऐसा अत्याचार देख देवता तथा महान् व्रतका पालन करनेवाले ऋषि मिलकर दैत्योंका विनाश करनेवाले सत्यपराक्रमी देवाधिदेव भगवान् विष्णुके पास जा इस प्रकार बोले--“भगवन्! आप समस्त प्राणियोंकी रक्षाके लिये कृतवीर्यकुमार अर्जुनका वध कीजिये।” एक दिन शक्तिशाली हैहयराजने दिव्य विमानद्वारा शचीके साथ क्रीड़ा करते हुए देवराज इन्द्रपर आक्रमण किया। भारत! तब भगवान् विष्णुने कार्तवीर्य अर्जुनका नाश करनेके सम्बन्धमें इन्द्रके साथ विचार-विनिमय किया
akṛtavraṇa uvāca | bhagavan bhūtarakṣārtham arjunaṁ jahi vai prabho | vimānena ca divyena haihayādhipatiḥ prabhuḥ || śacīsahāyaṁ krīḍantaṁ dharṣayāmāsa vāsavam | tatas tu bhagavān devaḥ śakreṇa sahitas tadā | kārtavīryavināśārthaṁ mantrayāmāsa bhārata ||
Akṛtavraṇa said: “O Blessed Lord, for the protection of all beings, slay Arjuna (Kārtavīrya), O Master. For the mighty lord of the Haihayas, riding a divine aerial car, once assaulted Vāsava (Indra) while he was sporting with Śacī. Then the divine Lord, together with Śakra, deliberated, O Bhārata, on the means to bring about Kārtavīrya’s destruction.”
अकृतव्रण उवाच
Educational Q&A
Power that turns into oppression invites dharmic correction: the protection of beings (bhūtarakṣā) is presented as a higher ethical imperative than the unchecked might of a ruler, and even the gods seek principled counsel to restore order.
Akṛtavraṇa reports that the Haihaya king Kārtavīrya Arjuna, using a divine vimāna, attacked Indra while Indra was with Śacī; in response, Viṣṇu and Indra confer on how to bring about Kārtavīrya’s downfall.