Shloka 33
तान् दृष्टवा भस्मसाद् भूतान् नारद: सुमहातपा:,उन्हें भस्म हुआ देख महातपस्वी नारदजी राजा सगरके समीप आये और उनसे सब समाचार निवेदित किया। मुनिके मुखसे निकले हुए इस घोर वचनको सुनकर राजा सगर दो घड़ीतक अनमने हो महादेवजीके कथनपर विचार करते रहे। पुत्रकी मृत्युजनित वेदनासे अत्यन्त दुखी हो स्वयं ही अपने-आपको सान्त्वना दे उन्होंने अश्वको ही दूँढ़नेका विचार किया। भरतश्रेष्ठ] तदनन्तर असमञ्जसके पुत्र अपने पौत्र अंशुमान्को बुलाकर यह बात कही--“तात! मेरे अमिततेजस्वी साठ हजार पुत्र मेरे ही लिये महर्षि कपिलकी क्रोधाग्निमें पड़कर नष्ट हो गये। अनघ! पुरवासियोंके हितकी रक्षा रखकर धर्मकी रक्षा करते हुए मैंने तुम्हारे पिताको भी त्याग दिया है”
tān dṛṣṭvā bhasmasād bhūtān nāradaḥ sumahātapāḥ | rājānaṃ sagaraṃ samīpam āgatya sarvaṃ samācacakṣe | munimukhān niṣkrāntaṃ ghoraṃ vacaḥ śrutvā rājā sagaro muhūrtadvayaṃ manasā vyākulaḥ san mahādevasya vacanaṃ vicārayāmāsa | putramaraṇajāṃ vedanām atiduḥkhitaḥ svayam ātmānam āśvāsya aśvameva mārgaṇīyaṃ manyata | tataḥ param asamañjasasya putraṃ svapautram aṃśumantaṃ āhūya idaṃ vacanam uvāca—tāta mamaiva kāraṇāt ṣaṣṭisahasrāṇi putrāḥ amitātejasaḥ maharṣeḥ kapilasya krodhāgninā dagdhā vināśitāḥ | anagha puravāsihitasaṃrakṣaṇe dharmaṃ pālayan mayā tava pitāpi parityaktaḥ |
Seeing them reduced to ashes, the great ascetic Nārada approached King Sagara and reported the whole matter. Hearing the dreadful words that issued from the sage’s mouth, Sagara sat for a time in stunned reflection, turning over in his mind what had been declared in connection with Mahādeva. Tormented by the pain of his sons’ death, he steadied himself and resolved that the sacrificial horse must be sought out. Then he summoned Aṃśumān, the grandson of Asamañjasa, and said: “My child, for my sake my sixty thousand sons of immeasurable prowess have perished, consumed by the fire of the sage Kapila’s wrath. Blameless one, intent on protecting the welfare of the city and upholding dharma, I even cast aside your father.”
लोगश उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage highlights the ethical burden of kingship: even while pursuing public welfare and ritual duty, a ruler’s actions can lead to grave unintended consequences. It also warns about the destructive power of wrath (krodha) and frames dharma as requiring steadiness amid grief and responsibility.
Nārada reports to King Sagara that his sons have been reduced to ashes (burnt by Kapila’s wrath). Sagara, shaken and grieving, composes himself and decides to continue the search for the sacrificial horse. He then calls his grandson Aṃśumān and explains that the sons died for Sagara’s cause and that Sagara had earlier abandoned Aṃśumān’s father Asamañjasa while prioritizing the kingdom’s welfare and dharma.