Shloka 12
पञ्चमहाभूतगुण-इन्द्रियनिग्रह-उपदेशः | Teaching on the Qualities of the Five Elements and Sense-Control
उत्तड़कस्तु महाराज तपो5तप्यत् सुदुश्चरम् । आरिराधयिषुर्विष्णुं बहून् वर्षमणान् विभु:,महाराज! प्रभावशाली उत्तड़कने भगवान् विष्णुकी आराधनाकी इच्छासे बहुत वर्षोंतक अत्यन्त दुष्कर तपस्या की थी
Uttaṅkastu mahārāja tapo 'tapyat suduścaram | ārīrādhayiṣur Viṣṇuṁ bahūn varṣa-gaṇān vibhuḥ ||
Mārkaṇḍeya said: “O great king, the mighty Uttaṅka, desiring to win the favor of Lord Viṣṇu, undertook an exceedingly arduous austerity and practiced it for many years.”
मार्कण्डेय उवाच
Educational Q&A
Sincere devotion (bhakti) is strengthened by disciplined austerity (tapas) and long perseverance; divine favor is sought not through haste but through sustained ethical effort and self-control.
Mārkaṇḍeya narrates to the king that Uttanka, intent on propitiating Viṣṇu, undertook extremely difficult austerities for many years, setting the stage for the ensuing divine response and the episode’s moral lessons.