Shloka 56

Devanagari script

उग्र॑ तपस्तप्यमानं यमुनातीरमाश्रितम्‌ । नानापक्षिगणाकीर्ण पुष्पितद्रुमशोभितम्‌,वे भयानक यक्ष नाना प्रकारके अस्त्र-शस्त्र लिये हुए थे। रास्तेमें मुझे मुनिश्रेष्ठ अगस्त्यजी दिखायी दिये, जो यमुनाके तटपर कठोर तपस्या कर रहे थे। वह प्रदेश भाँति- भाँतिके पक्षियोंसे व्याप्त और विकसित वृक्षावलियोंसे सुशोभित था

Transliteration

ugraṁ tapas tapyamānaṁ yamunā-tīram āśritam | nānā-pakṣi-gaṇākīrṇaṁ puṣpita-druma-śobhitam ||

Translation

“I saw the venerable sage Agastya engaged in fierce austerities, dwelling on the bank of the Yamunā. That region was alive with flocks of many kinds of birds and was beautified by trees in full bloom.”

Word by Word

• {'ugram': 'fierce, intense, formidable', 'tapas': 'austerity

• disciplined spiritual effort', 'tapyamānam': 'performing (austerity)

• engaged in penance', 'yamunā-tīram': 'the bank of the river Yamunā', 'āśritam': 'resorted to

• taking refuge in', 'nānā': 'various

• many kinds of', 'pakṣi-gaṇa': 'groups/flocks of birds', 'ākīrṇam': 'filled with

• pervaded', 'puṣpita': 'flowering

• in bloom', 'druma': 'tree', 'śobhitam': 'adorned

Speaker

धनेश्वर उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Dhaneshvara (speaker)
• Agastya (sage)
• Yamunā (river)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse foregrounds the ethical-spiritual ideal of tapas: disciplined austerity undertaken by a rishi in a secluded yet life-filled natural setting, suggesting that inner restraint and spiritual effort can coexist with, and even sanctify, the surrounding world.

What is happening in the narrative?

The speaker reports encountering the sage Agastya on the Yamunā’s bank, describing him as absorbed in severe penance and portraying the locale as richly adorned with flowering trees and many birds, setting a sacred and vivid scene for the episode.