Shloka 5
द्रुमक्षयम् अथो दृष्ट्वा किंचिच् छिष्टेषु शाखिषु उपगम्याब्रवीद् एतान् राजा सोमः प्रजापतीन्
drumakṣayam atho dṛṣṭvā kiṃcic chiṣṭeṣu śākhiṣu upagamyābravīd etān rājā somaḥ prajāpatīn
Seeing that the trees had been all but exhausted, with only a little left upon the branches, King Soma approached those Prajāpatis and addressed them.
Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya); within the narrative, Soma speaks to the Prajāpatis
Speaker: Parasara
Topic: Who intervened when the forest was nearly destroyed and how authority negotiated restoration
Teaching: Historical
Quality: mediating
Concept: Dharma requires moderation: after necessary correction, wise authority intervenes to prevent excess and preserve what remains.
Vedantic Theme: Dharma
Application: Seek timely counsel and course-correction after decisive action; preserve remnant resources rather than pursuing total eradication.
Vishishtadvaita: Cosmic governance is layered: empowered beings (Prajāpatis) act within the Lord’s order, and higher/peer authorities restore equilibrium—an organic hierarchy within one divine system.
Vamsha: Chandra
Dharma Exemplar: restraint
Key Kings: Soma
FAQs
It depicts the Lunar king seeking sanction and guidance from the progenitor-lords, grounding royal action in cosmic administration and dharma rather than mere force.
By narrating Soma’s appeal to the Prajāpatis at a moment of depletion, Parāśara frames kingship as accountable to higher regulators of creation—an extension of the ordered universe upheld ultimately by Vishnu.
Even when Vishnu is not named in the verse, the Purana’s structure implies that Prajāpatis and dynastic rulers function within Vishnu’s sovereignty, where cosmic order (ṛta/dharma) guides rightful rule and continuity of lineages.