Shloka 152
Ādi-parva Adhyāya 3 — Janamejaya’s Rite, Dhaumya’s Parīkṣā, and Uttanka’s Kuṇḍala Quest (सर्पसत्रप्रस्तावना–गुरुपरीक्षा–उत्तङ्कोपाख्यान)
ततो<श्वस्यापानमधमत् ततो<श्वाद्धम्यमानात् सर्वस््रोतो भ्य: पावकार्चिष: सधूमा निष्पेतु:,यह सुनकर उत्तंकने घोड़ेकी गुदामें फूँक मारी। फूँकनेसे घोड़ेके शरीरके समस्त छिद्रोंसे धूएँसहित आगकी लपटें निकलने लगीं
tato ’śvasyāpānam adhamat, tato ’śvād dhamyamānāt sarvasrotobhyaḥ pāvakārcīṣaḥ sadhūmā niṣpetuḥ
Then he blew into the horse’s apāna (the anal opening). As the horse was thus blown into, flames of fire—accompanied by smoke—burst forth from all the channels and apertures of its body. The episode underscores the extraordinary, otherworldly nature of the being in horse-form and the intensity of the test placed before the seeker, where resolve and obedience to one’s duty drive the action despite its startling form.
राम उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage highlights steadfastness in carrying out one’s assigned duty even when the task appears shocking or difficult, and it signals that the world of dharma includes tests where hidden, supernatural forces reveal themselves only after decisive action.
A horse is blown into at its lower opening; as a result, smoky flames erupt from all its bodily apertures, revealing an uncanny, non-ordinary phenomenon and intensifying the dramatic tension of the episode.