Shloka 27
Ādi-parva Adhyāya 98 — Paraśurāma’s kṣatriya suppression; Dīrghatamas, Bali, Sudēṣṇā, and the birth of Aṅga
स कदाचिन्महाराज ददर्श परमां स्त्रियम् । जाज्वल्यमानां वपुषा साक्षाच्छियमिवापराम्,महाराज जनमेजय! एक दिन उन्होंने एक परम सुन्दरी नारी देखी, जो अपने तेजस्वी शरीरसे ऐसी प्रकाशित हो रही थी, मानो साक्षात् लक्ष्मी ही दूसरा शरीर धारण करके आ गयी हो
sa kadācin mahārāja dadarśa paramāṃ striyam | jājvalyamānāṃ vapuṣā sākṣāc chriyam ivāparām ||
Vaiśampāyana said: O King, on one occasion he beheld a woman of surpassing beauty, her body blazing with radiance—appearing as though Lakṣmī herself had visibly assumed another form. The verse underscores how extraordinary splendor can be read as a sign of auspiciousness and divine favor, while also setting the stage for the ensuing events by marking her as no ordinary person.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the traditional Indic association of extraordinary radiance and beauty with śrī—auspicious fortune and divine presence—while implicitly cautioning that such signs, though compelling, are part of a larger moral and narrative unfolding rather than a guarantee of outcomes.
The narrator (Vaiśampāyana) tells King Janamejaya that, at a certain time, a figure (he) saw an exceptionally beautiful woman whose brilliance made her seem like Lakṣmī incarnate, introducing a pivotal character or moment through a vivid description of her splendor.