Shloka 67

Bhāgīratha’s Tapas and the Petition to Gaṅgā (गङ्गावतरण-प्रसङ्गः)

Devanagari script

पर्यतप्यत दुःखेन तेषां गतिमचिन्तयत्‌ । गड्भावतरणे यत्नं सुमहच्चाकरोन्नूप:,दिलीपको राज्य देकर अंशुमान्‌ भी परलोक-वासी हुए। दिलीपने जब अपने पितरोंके महान्‌ संहारका समाचार सुना, तब वे दुःखसे संतप्त हो उठे और उनकी सद्गतिका उपाय सोचने लगे। राजा दिलीपने गंगाजीको इस भूतलपर उतारनेके लिये महान प्रयत्न किया

Transliteration

paryatapyata duḥkhena teṣāṁ gatim acintayat | gaṅgāvataraṇe yatnaṁ sumahac cākarod nṛpaḥ ||

Translation

Sagara said: Tormented by grief, he pondered the means to secure their blessed passage. The king then undertook a very great effort to bring the river Gaṅgā down to the earth—so that the fallen ancestors might attain purification and a rightful destiny.

Word by Word

• {'paryatapyata': 'was afflicted, was scorched (by sorrow)', 'duḥkhena': 'with grief, through suffering', 'teṣām': 'of them (i.e., the ancestors/forefathers)', 'gatim': 'course, destiny

• especially a posthumous state or blessed end', 'acintayat': 'he reflected, he considered', 'gaṅgā': 'the river Gaṅgā (Ganges), purifier in dharma tradition', 'avataraṇe': 'in the act of bringing down

• descent (to earth)', 'yatnam': 'effort, endeavor, sustained attempt', 'sumahat': 'very great, immense', 'cakāra/akarot': 'did, undertook', 'nṛpaḥ': 'king'}

Speaker

सगर उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sagara
• Gaṅgā
• ancestors/forefathers (pitṛs)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

A ruler’s dharma includes responsibility toward ancestors and the moral duty to seek their welfare; sincere effort toward purification and restitution (here symbolized by Gaṅgā’s descent) is presented as a righteous response to collective loss.

What is happening in the narrative?

Overwhelmed by sorrow for the fate of his forefathers, the king reflects on how to secure their good end and undertakes the immense task of bringing the sacred Gaṅgā down to the earthly realm to purify and redeem them.