Shloka 15
गान्धारीपुत्रोत्पत्तिः — The Birth of Gāndhārī’s Hundred Sons (and Yuyutsu); Omens and Counsel on Succession
धारयामास च प्राणानृषींश्व॒ समुपानयत् । शूलाग्रे तप्यमानेन तपस्तेन महात्मना
vaiśampāyana uvāca |
dhārayāmāsa ca prāṇān ṛṣīṃś ca samupānayat |
śūlāgre tapyamānena tapasā tena mahātmanā ||
Ia terus menahan napas kehidupannya, dan hanya dengan mengingat, ia menarik para resi mendekat kepadanya. Melihat sang mahātma bertapa sedemikian keras di ujung pasak, para tapasvin lainnya diliputi gundah dan takzim; pada malam hari mereka datang dalam wujud burung, menampakkan daya mereka menurut kemampuan masing-masing, lalu mengajukan pertanyaan kepada brāhmaṇa utama itu, resi Māṇḍavya.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the moral tension between outward punishment and inner spiritual stature: even under extreme suffering, the ascetic maintains prāṇa and tapas, suggesting that true power lies in disciplined endurance and that such tapas compels ethical reflection in others.
Māṇḍavya, impaled on a stake, remains alive through yogic control of prāṇa and, by mental intention, summons sages. Disturbed and impressed by his austerity, the sages come at night (described as bird-forms in the surrounding narration) and question him about his condition and the extraordinary tapas.