Shloka 5
नियोगप्रसङ्गः — The Niyoga Episode: Births of Dhṛtarāṣṭra, Pāṇḍu, and Vidura
गजड़ोवाच यं लेभे वरुण: पुत्र पुरा भरतसत्तम । वसिष्ठनामा स मुनि: ख्यात आपव इत्युत,गंगा बोलीं--भरतश्रेष्ठ! पूर्वकालमें वरुणने जिन्हें पुत्ररूपमें प्राप्त किया था, वे वसिष्ठ नामक मुनि ही “आपव'” नामसे विख्यात हैं
Vaiśampāyana uvāca: yaṃ lebhe Varuṇaḥ putraṃ purā bharatasattama | Vasiṣṭhanāmā sa muniḥ khyāta āpava ity uta ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “O best of the Bharatas, the sage whom Varuṇa long ago obtained as a son is the muni named Vasiṣṭha; he is also renowned by the epithet ‘Āpava.’” The passage situates Vasiṣṭha’s authority in a sacred lineage, implying that spiritual stature is grounded in divine association and recognized tradition.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the legitimacy and moral-spiritual authority of a great ṛṣi through recognized lineage and established tradition: Vasiṣṭha’s renown (including the epithet Āpava) is not self-asserted but affirmed by sacred history and communal memory.
The narrator Vaiśampāyana identifies a celebrated sage: Vasiṣṭha, also called Āpava, described as one whom Varuṇa previously obtained as a son. This functions as a genealogical/identificatory note within the Adi Parva’s broader account of origins and lineages.