Shloka 20
Ādi-parva Adhyāya 209: Śaraṇāgati of the Cursed Apsarases; Nārītīrtha-prasiddhi; Arjuna’s Vimocana
प्रभिन्नकरटौ मत्तौ भूत्वा कुड्जरखूपिणौ । संलीनमपि दुर्गेषु निन्यतुर्यमसादनम्,कठिन-से-कठिन स्थानमें छिपे हुए मुनिको भी वे मद बहानेवाले मतवाले हाथीका रूप धारण करके यमलोक पहुँचा देते थे
prabhinnakaraṭau mattau bhūtvā kuñjararūpiṇau | saṁlīnam api durgeṣu ninyatur yamasādanam ||
Narada said: “With their temples streaming in rut and their minds intoxicated, they assumed the form of furious elephants; even a sage hidden away in the most inaccessible fastnesses they would drag off to the abode of Yama (death).” The verse underscores how unchecked power and intoxicated aggression can violate the sanctity of ascetic refuge and overturn the protections normally afforded to the righteous.
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse warns that when strength is joined with intoxication and cruelty, it becomes a force that tramples dharmic boundaries—so extreme that even those seeking refuge in austerity and seclusion are not spared. It highlights the ethical danger of unrestrained power and the violation of sacred protections.
Nārada describes two agents (implied by the dual forms) who, becoming musth elephants, hunt down and seize even a hidden muni in remote, hard-to-reach places, carrying him to Yama’s abode—an image of relentless, lethal pursuit.