Shloka 28
Droṇa-parva Adhyāya 29 — Arjuna’s defeat of Vṛṣaka–Acalā and the neutralization of Śakuni’s māyā
अपरा कुरुते कर्म मानुषं लोकमाश्रिता । शेते चतुर्थी त्वपरा निद्रां वर्षसहस्रिकम्,“तीसरी मूर्ति (मैं स्वयं जो) मनुष्यलोकका आश्रय ले नाना प्रकारके कर्म करती है और चौथी मूर्ति वह है, जो सहस्र युगोंतक एकार्णवके जलमें शयन करती है
aparā kurute karma mānuṣaṃ lokam āśritā | śete caturthī tv aparā nidrāṃ varṣasahasrikām ||
Sanjaya said: “One form, taking refuge in the human world, performs human actions of many kinds. Yet another—its fourth form—lies in sleep for thousands of years.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse contrasts modes of existence: one aspect engages in human-like action within the human realm, while another remains withdrawn in prolonged cosmic sleep—suggesting that action and rest, manifestation and withdrawal, are complementary rhythms within a larger order.
Sanjaya describes different ‘forms’ (mūrtis/aspects) and their functions—one active in the human world performing deeds, and a fourth characterized by long sleep—within a broader explanatory passage embedded in the war narrative.