Shloka 20
Pitāmaha-sabhā-varṇana & Hariścandra-māhātmya
Description of Brahmā’s Assembly and the Eminence of Hariścandra
अथर्वाड्विरसश्वैव बालखिल्या मरीचिपा: । मनो&न््तरिक्षं विद्याश्व वायुस्तेजो जल॑ं मही
atharvāḍvirasaś caiva bālakhilyā marīcipāḥ | mano 'ntarikṣaṃ vidyāś ca vāyus tejo jalaṃ mahī ||
Dijo Nārada: «Atharvan y los Aṅgirases, los Bālakhilyas que beben los rayos del Sol, los Marīcipas; y también la Mente, el espacio intermedio (Antarikṣa), el Conocimiento, el Viento, el Fuego/Luz, el Agua y la Tierra: éstos se cuentan entre las potestades divinas que presiden los constituyentes y los principios causales del mundo.»
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames the world as governed by presiding powers—ṛṣis and deities connected with cosmic functions (mind, space, knowledge, and the elements). Ethically, it supports a worldview where order (ṛta/dharma) is maintained through recognized principles and their divine custodians.
Nārada is listing revered seers and cosmic principles as part of a broader enumeration of the powers/agents involved in creation and governance of the universe, identifying them as significant presences within the epic’s cosmological discourse.