Shloka 23
Mārkaṇḍeya’s Consolation to the King: Exempla of Rāma and the Efficacy of Allies (मार्कण्डेयाश्वासनम्)
ब्रह्माजी बोले--पुत्रो! मैं तुम सबपर प्रसन्न हूँ, वर माँगो और तपस्यासे निवृत्त हो जाओ। केवल अमरत्वको छोड़कर जिसकी जो-जो इच्छा हो, उसके अनुसार वह वर माँगे। उसका वह मनोरथ पूर्ण होगा ।। यद् यदग्नौ हुतं सर्व शिरस्ते महदीप्सया । तथैव तानि ते देहे भविष्यन्ति यथेप्सया
yad yad agnau hutaṁ sarvaṁ śiras te mahad-īpsayā | tathaiva tāni te dehe bhaviṣyanti yathepsayā ||
Mārkaṇḍeya said: Brahmā declared that he was pleased and invited the ascetic to ask for boons—excluding only immortality. He then affirmed a specific assurance: whatever had been offered into the fire with intense resolve would return to the petitioner in embodied form exactly as desired. The episode underscores the ethical idea that disciplined intention and sacrificial effort, when aligned with divine sanction, bear precise and fitting results.
मार्कण्डेय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that offerings made with intense, disciplined intention (īpsā/saṅkalpa) are not wasted: when validated by divine grace, they mature into concrete results, even taking embodied form. It also implies a moral boundary to boons—immortality is excluded—highlighting the cosmic order that even gods uphold.
In Mārkaṇḍeya’s narration, Brahmā appears, expresses satisfaction with the ascetic’s austerities, and grants boons (except immortality). He specifically assures that whatever was offered into the sacrificial fire with great resolve will manifest for the petitioner exactly as wished.