Shloka 15
Ādi-parva Adhyāya 209: Śaraṇāgati of the Cursed Apsarases; Nārītīrtha-prasiddhi; Arjuna’s Vimocana
तपोधनैश्व ये क्रुद्धद: शापा उक्ता महात्मभि: । नाक्रामन्त तयोस्तेडपि वरदाननिराकृता:,कुछ तपस्याके धनी महात्माओंने क्रोधमें भरकर उन्हें जो शाप दिये, उनके शाप भी उन दैत्योंके मिले हुए वरदानसे प्रतिहत होकर उनका कुछ बिगाड़ नहीं सके
tapodhanaiś ca ye kruddhāḥ śāpā uktā mahātmabhiḥ | nākrāmanta tayos te 'pi varadāna-nirākṛtāḥ ||
Nārada said: Even the curses pronounced in anger by great sages rich in austerity could not take effect against those two; for those curses, too, were nullified by the boons the Daityas had obtained. The passage underscores that spiritual power used in wrath may be checked, and that extraordinary boons can create a dangerous moral imbalance when granted without foresight.
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the tension between ascetic power and the unintended consequences of boon-granting: even potent curses may fail when countered by extraordinary boons, suggesting that power—whether of tapas or of divine gifts—must be governed by discernment and restraint, not anger.
Nārada explains that certain Daityas (and specifically ‘those two’ referred to in the surrounding passage) had received such strong boons that even when great sages cursed them in anger, the curses could not harm them because the boons neutralized the effect.