Shloka 20
Ananta-Śeṣa Tapas and the Bearing of the Earth (अनन्त-शेष-तपस् तथा महीधारणम्)
तान् पक्षनखतुण्डाग्रैरभिनद् विनतासुतः । युगान्तकाले संक़्रुद्ध/ पिनाकीव परंतप:,शत्रुओंका दमन करनेवाले विनताकुमारने प्रलय-कालमें कुपित हुए पिनाकधारी रुद्रकी भाँति क्रोधमें भरकर उन सबको पंखों, नखों और चोंचके अग्रभागसे विदीर्ण कर डाला
tān pakṣa-nakha-tuṇḍāgrair abhinad vinatāsutaḥ | yugāntakāle saṁkruddhaḥ pinākīvā parantapaḥ ||
Śaunaka said: Vinatā’s son (Garuḍa), the subduer of foes, tore them apart with the tips of his wings, claws, and beak—like Pināka-bearing Rudra enraged at the end of an age. The scene underscores how overwhelming power, when roused in righteous wrath, becomes a force of cosmic-scale retribution against hostile aggressors.
शौनक उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the idea that when a powerful protector is provoked by hostile forces, his response can resemble cosmic justice—swift, decisive, and proportionate to the threat. The comparison to Rudra at yugānta frames wrath not as petty anger but as an overwhelming, order-restoring force against aggression.
Śaunaka narrates that Garuḍa, son of Vinatā, attacks and rends his opponents using his wings, talons, and beak. His fury is likened to Pināka-bearing Rudra at the end of an age, emphasizing the terrifying scale of Garuḍa’s assault.