Shloka 47

Adhyāya 283: Varṇa-vṛtti, Nyāya-ārjana, and the Decline-and-Restoration of Dharma (वर्णवृत्तिः न्यायार्जनं च)

Devanagari script

रुद्रकोपान्महाकाया: कालाग्निसदृशोपमा: । क्षोभयन्‌ सुरसैन्यानि भीषयन्त: समन्ततः,वे विशालकाय भूत रुद्रदेवके क्रोधसे कालाग्निके समान होकर देवताओंकी सेनाओंको चारों ओरसे डराने और शक्षुब्ध करने लगे

Transliteration

rudrakopān mahākāyāḥ kālāgnisadṛśopamāḥ | kṣobhayan surasainyāni bhīṣayantaḥ samantataḥ ||

Translation

Dakṣa dit : «De la colère de Rudra surgirent des êtres gigantesques, semblables au feu de Kāla à la fin d’un âge. Ils jetèrent dans le trouble les armées des dieux et les épouvantèrent de toutes parts.»

Word by Word

रुद्रकोपात्from Rudra's wrath

महाकायाःhuge-bodied

कालाग्निसदृशोपमाःcomparable to the fire of Time (cosmic conflagration)

क्षोभयन्agitating, shaking

सुरसैन्यानिthe armies of the gods

भीषयन्तःterrifying

समन्ततःon all sides, all around

Speaker

दक्ष उवाच

Characters & Entities

Daksha

Rudra (Śiva)

Devas (Suras)

Sura-sainyas (armies of the gods)

Kālāgni (the cosmic fire of Time)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Unchecked divine wrath is portrayed as a force that overwhelms even celestial powers; the passage underscores the ethical warning that disrespect or provocation toward a great being can unleash consequences that disturb cosmic and social order.

What is happening in the narrative?

Daksha describes how, due to Rudra’s anger, massive, terrifying beings appear like apocalyptic fire and proceed to panic and disrupt the armies of the gods from all directions.