Shloka 11
Arjuna meets the Lokapālas, is tested by Indra, and is led to Amarāvatī for astra-śikṣā
Indraloka-gamana
एतं पर्वतराजानं समुद्र च महोदधिम् | आवसन् वरुणो राजा भूतानि परिरक्षति
etaṁ parvatarājānaṁ samudraṁ ca mahodadhim | āvasan varuṇo rājā bhūtāni parirakṣati ||
Vaiśampāyana dit : Demeurant sur ce roi des montagnes et au sein de l’océan—vaste réservoir des eaux—le roi Varuṇa réside, protégeant tous les êtres vivants. Le passage inscrit l’ordre cosmique dans la géographie : la montagne liée au coucher du soleil et la grande mer deviennent le siège de Varuṇa, d’où il soutient la protection et la retenue, piliers du dharma.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse presents Varuṇa as a guardian-king whose residence in the ocean symbolizes protective sovereignty and moral restraint; cosmic governance is portrayed as the safeguarding of all beings, aligning kingship with dharma.
Vaiśampāyana describes Varuṇa’s abode: he dwells in relation to a preeminent mountain and the great ocean, and from there he protects living creatures—linking divine presence to specific cosmic locations.