Shloka 11
Āstīka Stops the Sarpa-satra; Royal Closure and Protective Phalaśruti (आस्तीकः सर्पसत्रनिवर्तनम्)
जुद्वत्स्वृत्विक्ष्वथ तदा सर्पसत्रे महाक्रतौ । अहय: प्रापतंस्तत्र घोरा: प्राणिभयावहा:,उस समय उस महान् यज्ञ सर्पसत्रमें ज्यों-ज्यों ऋत्विजू लोग आहुतियाँ डालते, त्यों-त्यों प्राणिमात्रको भय देनेवाले घोर सर्प वहाँ आ-आकर गिरते थे
judvatsvṛtvijṣv atha tadā sarpasatre mahākratau | ahayaḥ prāpatans tatra ghorāḥ prāṇibhayāvahāḥ ||
Śaunaka said: Then, at that great sacrificial rite—the serpent-sacrifice—whenever the officiating priests poured the oblations into the fire, terrifying serpents, bringers of fear to all living beings, kept falling there one after another. The scene underscores how ritual power, when driven by vengeance, can turn into indiscriminate destruction that threatens the innocent along with the guilty.
शौनक उवाच