Shloka 49

Saptasārasvata-tīrtha-prasaṅgaḥ | The Saptasārasvata Pilgrimage Account and the Maṅkaṇaka Narrative

Devanagari script

वायुभक्षा जलाहारा: पर्णभक्षाश्न॒ तापसा: । नानानियमयुक्ताश्व तथा स्थण्डिलशायिन:

Transliteration

vāyubhakṣā jalāhārāḥ parṇabhakṣāś ca tāpasāḥ | nānāniyamayuktāś ca tathā sthaṇḍilaśāyinaḥ ||

Translation

ヴァイシャンパーヤナは言った。風を糧とする苦行者もいれば、水のみで命をつなぐ者もあり、葉だけを食する者もいた。さまざまな誓戒と修行を守り、裸の大地に臥して眠る者さえあった。かくしてサラスヴァティーの岸辺において、これら名高き聖仙たちは、苦行と自己抑制によって、諸河の第一たるその流れの神聖と光輝をいよいよ高め、その岸をダルマと自制の座として顕わにした。

Word by Word

• वायुभक्षाः: air-eaters (living on air)
• वायुभक्षाः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वायु-भक्ष
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• जलाहाराः: water-sustained (living on water)
• जलाहाराः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: जल-आहार
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• पर्णभक्षाश्च: and leaf-eaters
• पर्णभक्षाश्च: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पर्ण-भक्ष
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• तापसाः: ascetics
• तापसाः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: तापस
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• नाना-नियम-युक्ताः: endowed with various observances
• नाना-नियम-युक्ताः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: नाना-नियम-युक्त
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• तथा: also/likewise
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा

• स्थण्डिल-शायिनः: those who sleep on bare ground
• स्थण्डिल-शायिनः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: स्थण्डिल-शायिन्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• Sarasvatī (river)
• tāpasas (ascetics)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights niyama (disciplined observance) and tapas (austerity) as visible expressions of dharma: restraint over bodily needs and steadfast practice are portrayed as sanctifying both the practitioner and the sacred space they inhabit.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana describes a riverside scene on the Sarasvatī where many kinds of ascetics reside, each following distinct austerities—living on air, water, leaves, and sleeping on bare ground—thereby adorning the riverbank with an atmosphere of holiness and rigorous spiritual practice.