Shloka 17

Devanagari script

त्वमगाधे5प्लवे मग्नान्‌ पाण्डवान्‌ कुरुसागरे । समुद्धर प्लवो भूत्वा शड्खचक्रगदाधर,'शंख, चक्र और गदा धारण करनेवाले परमेश्वर! नौकारहित अगाध कौरव-सागरमें निमग्न पाण्डवोंका आप स्वयं ही नौका बनकर उद्धार कीजिये

Transliteration

tvam agādhe 'plave magnān pāṇḍavān kuru-sāgare | samuddhara plavo bhūtvā śaṅkha-cakra-gadā-dhara ||

Translation

Wahai Tuhan pemegang sangkha, cakra, dan gada! Pāṇḍava telah tenggelam dalam samudra Kuru yang dalam dan tanpa tepi, tanpa perahu. Jadilah rakit mereka sendiri dan angkatlah mereka—bebaskan dari bahaya ini.

Word by Word

त्वम्you

अगाधेin the unfathomable (one)

अप्लवेin the boatless (one)

मग्नान्sunk, immersed

पाण्डवान्the Pandavas

कुरु-सागरेin the Kuru-sea (ocean of the Kurus)

समुद्धरlift out, rescue

प्लवःa boat

भूत्वाhaving become

शङ्ख-चक्र-गदा-धरO bearer of conch, discus, and mace

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Pāṇḍavas

Kurus

Śaṅkha (conch)

Cakra (discus)

Gadā (mace)

Paramēśvara (the Lord; implied as Viṣṇu/Kṛṣṇa)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

When dharma seems overwhelmed by a vast and hostile world, the devotee seeks refuge in the Lord as the very means of crossing—trusting divine protection and guidance rather than merely human strength.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya, describing the crisis of the war, invokes the Lord (identified by conch, discus, and mace) and pleads that He rescue the Pāṇḍavas, who are portrayed as drowning in an unfathomable ‘Kuru-ocean’ with no boat to save them.