Shloka 31
Tapovana-praveśaḥ — The King’s Entry into the Sacred Grove and Vision of the Āśrama
जातैरिह महीपाल जायमानैश्न तैर्मही । न शशाकात्मना55त्मानमियं धारयितुं धरा,राजेन्द्र! गौओं, घोड़ों, गदहों, ऊँटों, भैसों, कच्चे मांस खानेवाले पशुओं, हाथियों और मृगोंकी योनिमें भी यहाँ असुरोंने जन्म लिया और अभीतक वे जन्म धारण करते जा रहे थे। उन सबसे यह पृथ्वी इस प्रकार भर गयी कि अपने-आपको भी धारण करनेमें समर्थ न हो सकी
vaiśaṃpāyana uvāca | jātair iha mahīpāla jāyamānaiś ca tair mahī | na śaśākātmanātmānam iyaṃ dhārayituṃ dharā rājendra ||
Vaiśaṃpāyana said: O king, as those rulers were born here and continued to be born, the earth became so crowded with them that this very Earth, by her own power, could no longer sustain even herself. The passage underscores how unchecked proliferation of powerful beings—especially those of destructive disposition—turns sovereignty into a burden upon the world, calling for restraint and righteous governance.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Power and birth alone do not justify dominion; when rulers multiply without restraint or righteousness, the world itself becomes overburdened. The verse frames governance as a dharmic responsibility tied to maintaining cosmic and social balance.
Vaiśaṃpāyana explains to the king that the Earth became unable to sustain herself because of the continual birth and presence of many powerful rulers/beings. This sets up the broader motif of the Earth’s burden that leads to divine or systemic intervention in the epic’s unfolding events.