Shloka 4
Garuḍa–Śakra Saṃvāda and the Retrieval of Amṛta (गरुड–शक्र संवादः अमृत-अपहरण-प्रसङ्गः)
हन्यादेतान् सम्पतन्ती शाखेत्यथ विचिन्त्य सः । नखैर्दढतरं वीर: संगृह्द गजकच्छपौ
hanyād etān sampatantī śākhety atha vicintya saḥ | nakhair dṛḍhataraṃ vīraḥ saṅgṛhya gajakacchapau ||
落ちかけたバニヤンの枝に大聖仙たちがぶら下がっているのを見て、ガルダは思った。「この枝は崩れ落ちる。落ちればこのṛṣiたちは必ず命を落とす——その死が我が手によって起こってはならぬ。」そう決して、勇なるガルダは爪で象と亀をいっそう固くつかみ、聖者たちの滅びを恐れて飛びかかり、その枝をくちばしでくわえ取った。すべては苦行者を守るための驚くべき偉業であった。
रौहिण उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even immense power must be governed by dharma: one should act with vigilance so that one’s actions do not cause unintended harm, especially to the innocent and to those devoted to tapas. Garuḍa’s restraint and protective choice exemplify ethical responsibility.
Garuḍa, while carrying an elephant and a tortoise, notices that a banyan branch with sages clinging to it is about to break and fall. Fearing that the falling branch would kill the sages and that he might become the cause, he firmly holds the animals and lifts the branch with his beak to save the seers.