Shloka 5
Ādi Parva, Adhyāya 180 — Svayaṃvara-Virodha and Pāṇḍava Parākrama
Draupadī Episode
अश्रौषमहमूरुस्थो गर्भशय्यागतस्तदा । आसवं मातृवर्गस्थ भगूणां क्षत्रियैर्वथे
aśrauṣam aham ūrūstho garbhaśayyāgataḥ tadā | āsavaṃ mātṛvargasthaṃ bhṛgūṇāṃ kṣatriyair vadhe || trayāṇāṃ pāvakānāṃ ca satre tasmin mahāmuniḥ | āsīt purastād dīptānāṃ caturtha iva pāvakaḥ ||
Ūrva dit : «Même lorsque je reposais dans le sein, étendu sur la cuisse de ma mère, j’entendais distinctement les cris déchirants des mères des Bhṛgus lorsque les Kṣatriyas les massacraient. Et, lors de cette séance sacrificielle, devant les trois feux sacrés flamboyants, le grand sage Parāśara brillait tel un quatrième feu—rayonnant et redoutable.»
ऑर्व उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames mass violence as a moral wound that echoes across generations: even an unborn Aurva ‘hears’ the mothers’ lament, suggesting that adharma leaves deep, inheritable consequences. It also highlights the ethical counterweight of tapas and yajña—spiritual radiance (tejas) embodied by Parāśara—implying that restraint, ritual order, and inner discipline are needed to confront cycles of vengeance.
Aurva recounts a prenatal memory: while still in the womb, he heard the cries of Bhṛgu-lineage women when Kṣatriyas killed the Bhārgavas. The scene then shifts to a sacrificial session (satra) with three blazing fires, where the sage Parāśara stands before them, shining like a ‘fourth fire,’ emphasizing the intensity of the ritual setting and the sage’s formidable presence.