Shloka 3

Adhyāya 6: Kaṅka (Yudhiṣṭhira) Seeks Refuge in Virāṭa’s Assembly

Devanagari script

कंसविद्रावणकरीमसुराणां क्षयंकरीम्‌ | शिलातटबविनिक्षिप्तामाकाशं प्रति गामिनीम्‌

Transliteration

vaiśampāyana uvāca | kaṃsavidrāvaṇakarīm asurāṇāṃ kṣayaṃkarīm | śilātaṭe viniṣkiptām ākāśaṃ prati gāminīm ||

Translation

“(I contemplate) that goddess who terrifies Kaṃsa and brings ruin to the asuras; who, when hurled onto a stone slab, rose and sped into the sky.”

Word by Word

• कंस: of Kamsa
• कंस: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: कंस
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Singular

• विद्रावण: driving away, terrifying
• विद्रावण: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: विद्रावण
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• करीम्: one who does/causes (f.)
• करीम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: करिन् (स्त्री. करिणी/करी)
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• असुराणाम्: of the demons
• असुराणाम्: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: असुर
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Plural

• क्षयम्: destruction
• क्षयम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: क्षय
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• करीम्: one who does/causes (f.)
• करीम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: करिन् (स्त्री. करिणी/करी)
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• शिला: on a rock/slab
• शिला: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: शिला
• Form: Feminine, Locative, Singular

• तट: on a surface/ledge
• तट: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: तट
• Form: Masculine, Locative, Singular

• विनिक्षिप्ताम्: thrown down, cast
• विनिक्षिप्ताम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वि-नि-क्षिप्
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular, क्त (past passive participle)

• आकाशम्: the sky
• आकाशम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: आकाश
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• प्रति: towards
• प्रति: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: प्रति

• गामिनीम्: going, moving
• गामिनीम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: गामिन् (स्त्री. गामिनी)
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• Kaṃsa
• Asuras
• Śilā (stone slab)
• Ākāśa (sky)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse evokes a protective divine power that overturns tyranny and demonic forces: even when violently attacked, the auspicious goddess remains unharmed and transcendent. Ethically, it underscores confidence in dharmic protection and the eventual defeat of adharma.

What is happening in the narrative?

The narrator describes (in the form of praise/remembering) the goddess associated with the Kaṃsa episode: when Kaṃsa tried to kill the infant by smashing her on a stone slab, she rose into the sky—signaling divine intervention and Kaṃsa’s impending downfall.