Shloka 16
Guṇa-vibhāga and Prāṇa–Agni–Yoga Upadeśa (गुणविभाग तथा प्राण-अग्नि-योगोपदेश)
राजाके लिये प्रजाजनोंका पालन करना ही धर्म है। अतः आपको प्रजावर्गकी रक्षा ही करनी चाहिये। भूपाल! मैं शान्तिपूर्वक तपस्या नहीं कर पा रहा हूँ ।। ममाश्रमसमीपे वै समेषु मरुधन्वसु । समुद्रो बालुकापूर्ण उज्जालक इति स्मृत:,मेरे आश्रमके समीप समस्त मरुप्रदेशमें एक बालूसे पूर्ण अर्थात् बालुकामय समुद्र है, उसका नाम है उज्जालक
Uttaṅka uvāca: rājñe prajānāṁ pālanaṁ eva dharmaḥ; ataḥ te prajā-vargasya rakṣā kartavyā. bhūpāla! ahaṁ śānti-pūrvakaṁ tapasā na śaknomi. mamāśrama-samīpe vai sameṣu maru-dhanvasu samudro bālukā-pūrṇa ujjālaka iti smṛtaḥ.
Uttaṅka said: “For a king, the very essence of dharma is the protection and maintenance of the people; therefore you must safeguard your subjects. O ruler, I am unable to pursue my austerities in peace. Near my hermitage, across the level stretches of desert, there lies a ‘sea’ filled with sand—known as Ujjālaka.”
उत्तड़क उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds rājadharma: a king’s primary duty is to protect and sustain the people. When governance fails to secure peace, even a sage’s spiritual practice is disturbed—showing that political duty underwrites social and religious stability.
Uttaṅka addresses a king, urging him to fulfill his duty of protecting the populace. He explains that he cannot perform austerities peacefully and begins describing the setting near his hermitage—an immense sand-filled expanse called Ujjālaka—introducing the locale connected to his grievance.