Shloka 9436
सप्रजापतय: सर्वे बालार्कसदृशप्रभम् । उस बालकके रूपमें ये सर्वलोकेश्वर प्रभु भगवान् महादेव ही थे, किंतु प्रजापतियोंसहित सम्पूर्ण देवता बालसूर्यके सदृश कान्तिमान् उन जगदीश्वरको पहचान न सके
sa-prajāpatayaḥ sarve bālārka-sadṛśa-prabham | sa bālakasya rūpeṇa sarva-lokeśvaraḥ prabhuḥ bhagavān mahādeva eva āsīt, kintu prajāpatibhiḥ saha samastā devatāḥ bāla-sūrya-sadṛśa-kāntimantaṃ taṃ jagad-īśvaraṃ parijñātuṃ na śekuḥ |
Vyāsa said: All the Prajāpatis beheld a radiant being, shining like the newly risen sun. Yet that child-form was none other than Bhagavān Mahādeva himself—the Lord, sovereign of all worlds. Still, even the entire host of gods together with the Prajāpatis could not recognize that luminous Jagadīśvara. The passage underscores how divine reality can remain concealed by appearance, and how pride in status or mere outward perception can obstruct true discernment.
व्यास उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even exalted beings may fail to recognize the highest truth when it is veiled by an unexpected form. The verse points to the ethical need for humility and inner discernment: status, learning, or power do not guarantee right perception of dharma or the divine.
Vyāsa narrates that the Prajāpatis and the gods see a child-like figure blazing like the rising sun. That figure is actually Mahādeva, the Lord of all worlds, but they cannot identify him despite his evident radiance.