Shloka 50
Bhāgīratha’s Tapas and the Petition to Gaṅgā (गङ्गावतरण-प्रसङ्गः)
स तु तेनैव मार्गेण समुद्र प्रविवेश ह । अपश्यच्च महात्मानं कपिल॑ तुरगं च तम्,उन्होंने उसी मार्गसे समुद्रमें प्रवेश किया और महात्मा कपिल तथा यज्ञिय अश्वको देखा
sa tu tenaiva mārgeṇa samudraṃ praviveśa ha | apaśyacca mahātmānaṃ kapilaṃ turaṅgaṃ ca tam ||
Following that very route, he entered the ocean and there beheld the great-souled sage Kapila, along with that sacrificial horse. The moment frames a moral turning point: the seeker’s persistence leads to a direct encounter with ascetic power and the sacred object at the center of the royal rite, demanding restraint and discernment rather than rash accusation.
सगर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Perseverance can bring one to the truth, but the encounter with holiness and sacred duty requires self-control; rash judgment in the presence of a great ascetic can lead to grave consequences.
Sagara (or his agent/descendant in the episode’s flow) follows the same trail into the ocean and discovers the sage Kapila sitting there, with the sacrificial horse that had been sought.