Valmiki Ramayana 1.57.14: Bala Kanda, Sarga 57, Shloka 14
विश्वामित्रस्य दक्षिणतपः तथा त्रिशङ्कोः स्वशरीरेण स्वर्गगमनाभिलाषः
Visvamitra’s Southern Austerity and Trisanku’s Bodily Ascent Aspiration
Addressed to RamaSetting: tapas-sthāna/āśrama region of Vasiṣṭha’s sons (southern direction implied from prior verse)Places named: तपोवन/तपो यत्र तेपिरे (implied)Arrival at the hermitage where long austerities are performed
वासिष्ठा दीर्घतपसस्तपो यत्र हि तेपिरे ।
त्रिशंङ्कुस्सुमहातेजा श्शतं परमभास्वरम् ॥१४॥
वसिष्ठपुत्रान् ददृशे तप्यमानान् यशस्विनः ।
vāsiṣṭhā dīrghatapasas tapo yatra hi tepire |
triśaṅkuḥ sumahātejāḥ śataṃ paramabhāsvaram ||14||
vasiṣṭhaputrān dadṛśe tapyamānān yaśasvinaḥ |
त्रिशंकु बहुत तेज था। वो उस जगह पहुंचा जहाँ वसिष्ठ के बेटे लंबा टाइम से तपस्या कर रहे थे। वहीं उसने उन्हे देखा। वो सब फेमस थे, चमक रहे थे, और सौ नंबर थे। सब तपस्या में लगे थे।
Sandhi Notes
- dīrghatapasas tapo = dīrghatapasaḥ + tapaḥ (visarga → s before t)
Most brilliant Trisanku approached the sons of Vasishta in the place where they had been performing austerities for a long time. There he saw the famous, exceedingly effulgent sons of Vasishta one hundred in number practising penance.
The teaching
Long tapas confers authority and radiance; spiritual lineage manifests as collective strength.
- Ethical theme
- Ascetic discipline and authority
For your practice
Encourages tapas (regular discipline) as a means to inner tejas and steadiness.
Mood and themes
- Rasa
- Adbhuta (wonder), with Shanta (peace)
- Mood
- Austere, radiant, expectant
Themes
- Dharma
- Itihasa
- Tapas
- Guru lineage
- Spiritual authority
Tejas arising from tapas parallels the inner luminosity of disciplined mind (antaḥkaraṇa-śuddhi) enabling higher discernment.
Chāndogya/Bṛhadāraṇyaka motifs of tapas and brahmacarya generating tejas; the ‘radiant’ sage as knower (vidvān) sign.
Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 1.57.15-16 (Triśaṅku’s respectful approach)
Vedic/Brāhmaṇa valuation of tapas as source of siddhi and authority; Purāṇic trope: groups of sages in hundreds performing penance
Triśaṅku episode culminating in Viśvāmitra’s tapas-powered intervention (1.58-60)
अनुष्टुप्
Narrative-solemn
Steady madhyama with uplift on सुमहातेजाः/परमभास्वरम्
FAQs
Dharma acknowledges the moral weight of tapas and spiritual lineage; approaching ascetics is not merely a transaction but an encounter with disciplined authority that must be treated with reverence.
Triśaṅku arrives at the hermitage-region where Vasiṣṭha’s sons are engaged in long austerities and sees them assembled.
The ascetics’ virtue is tapas (austerity) and spiritual radiance born of discipline.
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