Shloka 23
नारदस्य वच: श्रुत्वा क्रुद्धः प्राज्वलदड्धिरा: । अपिबत् तेजसा वारि विष्ट भ्य सुमहातपा:
nāradāsya vacaḥ śrutvā kruddhaḥ prājvalad aṅgirāḥ | apibat tejasā vāri viṣṭabhya sumahātapāḥ ||
Entendant les paroles de Nārada, Utathya—fils d’Aṅgiras—s’embrasa de colère. Ce grand ascète, s’appuyant sur la puissance de ses austérités, immobilisa les eaux et se mit à les boire par l’éclat de son tejas spirituel.
अजुन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical tension between spiritual power (tapas/tejas) and self-control: even a great ascetic can be driven by anger to use extraordinary power in a forceful, potentially harmful way, implying that mastery over krodha is integral to dharma.
After hearing Nārada’s statement, Utathya becomes enraged; empowered by his austerities, he restrains the waters and begins to drink them up through his tejas, demonstrating the formidable potency attributed to sages in epic narrative.