Shloka 50
Indrajit’s Binding, Restoration by Viśalyā, and Counsel Restraining Rāvaṇa (Āraṇyaka Parva 273)
निशायामिव खटद्योत: प्रावृटूकाले समन्ततः । प्रतिष्ठानाय पृथिवीं मार्गमाणस्तदाभवत्,“समस्त भूमण्डल सब ओरसे जलमें डूबा हुआ था। उस समय एकार्णवसे उपलक्षित एकमात्र आकाशमें पृथ्वीका पता लगानेके लिये भगवान् इस प्रकार विचर रहे थे, जैसे वर्षाकालकी रातमें जुगनू सब ओर उड़ता फिरता है। वे पृथ्वीको कहीं स्थिररूपसे स्थापित करनेके लिये उसकी खोज कर रहे थे
niśāyām iva khaṭadyotaḥ prāvṛṭkāle samantataḥ | pratiṣṭhānāya pṛthivīṁ mārgamāṇas tadābhavat ||
Bhīmasena said: “At that time, when the whole circle of the earth was submerged on every side in water, the Lord moved about in the lone expanse of sky marked by the single ocean, searching for the earth so that he might set it firmly in its proper place—like a firefly flitting everywhere on a rainy-season night.”
भीमसेन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the restoration of order: when the world is overwhelmed (symbolized by the earth submerged in waters), divine or righteous agency seeks a stable foundation (pratiṣṭhā) to re-establish balance and continuity.
Bhīma describes a cosmic scene in which the Lord, with the earth lost beneath waters, moves through the sky searching for the earth in order to set it firmly again—compared to a firefly wandering across a rainy night.