Shloka 1
Uttaṅka’s Petition for Madayantī’s Divine Earrings (Maṇikuṇḍala) — Agreement, Proof, and Vigilance
इस प्रकार श्रीमह्याभारत आश्वमेधिकपववके अन्तर्गत अनुगीतापर्वमें उत्तडुको पाख्यानमें कृष्णवाक्यविषयक पचपनवाँ अध्याय पूरा हुआ ॥/ ५५ ॥ (दाक्षिणात्य अधिक पाठके ५ श्लोक मिलाकर कुल ४२ श्लोक हैं) भीकम (2 अमान षट्पज्चाशत्तमो< ध्याय: उत्तंककी गुरुभक्तिका वर्णन
Janamejaya uvāca: Uttankaḥ kena tapasā saṃyukto vai mahāmanāḥ | yaḥ śāpaṃ dātukāmo 'bhūd viṣṇave prabhaviṣṇave ||
Ainsi, dans le Mahābhārata, au sein de l’Aśvamedhika Parva, dans l’Anugītā-parva, au récit d’Uttaṅka, s’acheva le cinquante-cinquième chapitre portant sur les paroles de Kṛṣṇa. Alors Janamejaya demanda : « Ô brahmane, par quelle austérité et quelle discipline spirituelle le magnanime Uttaṅka était-il pourvu, pour en venir à former l’intention de maudire même Viṣṇu, le Seigneur tout-puissant, source de toute puissance ? »
जनमेजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds the ethical tension between ascetic power (tapas) and moral restraint: even a highly disciplined sage can be driven toward harmful speech (śāpa) if anger overrides discernment. It invites reflection on how spiritual attainment should be governed by dharma, humility, and self-control—especially when directed toward the divine or toward those beyond ordinary accountability.
Janamejaya, hearing about Uttanka, asks the sage-narrator what kind of austerity empowered Uttanka so greatly that he contemplated cursing Viṣṇu himself. This question sets up the ensuing account of Uttanka’s intense guru-devotion and the events that lead him into confrontation and indignation, revealing both his spiritual potency and the risks of righteous anger.