Shloka 33
Āstīka-stuti at Janamejaya’s Sacrifice (आस्तीकस्तुतिः / यज्ञप्रशंसा)
जनमेजय उवाच अथ तत् कथितं केन यद् वृत्तं तद् वनस्पतौ | आश्चर्यभूतं लोकस्य भस्मराशीकृतं तदा
janamejaya uvāca atha tat kathitaṁ kena yad vṛttaṁ tad vanaspatau | āścaryabhūtaṁ lokasya bhasmarāśīkṛtaṁ tadā ||
Janamejaya berkata: “Siapakah yang menceritakan kepadamu perihal pohon itu—yang ketika itu, karena gigitan Takṣaka, menjadi tumpukan abu, sesuatu yang mengherankan seluruh rakyat? Kāśyapa menghidupkannya kembali dan menghijaukannya. Seandainya Kāśyapa tiba tepat waktu dan dengan mantra-mantranya menetralkan racun Takṣaka, niscaya ayahku tidak akan binasa.”
जनमेजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the tension between destiny and timely human intervention: extraordinary knowledge and power (Kāśyapa’s mantras) can avert harm, yet delay or obstruction can make loss irreversible—prompting ethical reflection on responsibility, prevention, and the consequences of missed opportunities.
Janamejaya asks who reported the astonishing incident of a tree being reduced to ashes by Takṣaka’s bite and then restored to life and greenness by Kāśyapa. He then laments that if Kāśyapa had reached in time to counteract the poison, Janamejaya’s father (Parīkṣit) would have survived.