Shloka 96
Agni’s Withdrawal to the Forest and Identification with Āṅgirasa (अग्न्याङ्गिरस-इतिहासः)
भर्ता प्रविष्ट: सहसा तस्या भरतसत्तम | राजन्! वह घरकी मालकिन थी, जो जूँठे बर्तन माँज रही थी। ज्यों ही वह बर्तन साफ करके उधरसे निवृत्त हुई, त्यों ही उसके पतिदेव सहसा घरपर आ गये। भरतश्रेष्ठ! वे भूखसे अत्यन्त पीड़ित थे
bhartā praviṣṭaḥ sahasā tasyā bharatasattama | rājan! vah gharakī mālikin thī, jo jūṁṭhe bartana māṁja rahī thī | jyoṁ hī vah bartana sāpha karake udharase nivṛtta huī, tyoṁ hī usake patideva sahasā gharapara ā gaye | bharataśreṣṭha! ve bhūkhase atyanta pīḍita the
Mārkaṇḍeya said: “O best of the Bharatas, O king—she, the mistress of the house, was washing the soiled dishes. As soon as she finished cleaning them and turned away from that task, her husband suddenly arrived at home. O foremost of the Bharatas, he was tormented by intense hunger.”
मार्कण्डेय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds gṛhastha-dharma: ordinary domestic work and attentive care for family needs are part of dharma. The husband’s sudden arrival in extreme hunger sets up an ethical moment where timely service, compassion, and responsibility in the household become spiritually meaningful.
Mārkaṇḍeya describes a scene: the mistress of the house is scrubbing used dishes; just as she finishes and steps away, her husband unexpectedly comes home, suffering from severe hunger. This prepares the next actions and moral emphasis of the episode.