Shloka 25
Dharma-vyādha on Parental Worship
Pitṛ-mātṛ-śuśrūṣā as Paramadaivata
भगवान् विष्णुके द्वारा मधुकैटभका जाँघोंपर वध आवां वरय देव त्वं वरदौ स्व: सुरोत्तम । दातारी स्वो वरं तुभ्यं तद् ब्रवीह्मविचारयन्,'सुरश्रेष्ठ! हम दोनों तुम्हें वर देते हैं। देव! तुम्हीं हमलोगोंसे वर माँगो। हम दोनों तुम्हें तुम्हारी इच्छाके अनुसार वर देंगे। तुम बिना सोचे-विचारे जो चाहो, माँग लो”
mārkaṇḍeya uvāca | bhagavān viṣṇunā dvābhyāṃ madhukaiṭabhayoḥ jaṅghopari vadham āvāṃ vṛṇīvaḥ | deva tvaṃ varadaḥ svaḥ surottama | dātārau svaḥ varaṃ tubhyaṃ tad bravīhi avicārayan | suraśreṣṭha! āvāṃ dvau tvāṃ varaṃ dadāvaḥ | deva! tvam eva asmābhyaḥ varaṃ yācasva | āvāṃ tvāṃ tava icchānusāraṃ varaṃ dāsyāvaḥ | tvaṃ vinā vicāraṃ yat icchasi tat yācasva ||
マーラカンデーヤは言った。「吉祥なるヴィシュヌよ。われら二人—マドゥとカイタバ—は、汝がわれらをその腿の上で討たんと望むゆえ、汝に一つの恩寵（ヴァラ）を授けよう。神々の中の最勝者よ、われらは与える者。ゆえに願いを求めよ。ためらうことなく言え。汝の望むままに授けよう。」
मार्कण्डेय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage highlights discernment in the use of power: even when offered an open-ended boon, the wise choose what aligns with a just outcome. It frames ethical intelligence as superior to brute force—victory can come through rightful, well-aimed intention rather than uncontrolled violence.
Madhu and Kaiṭabha, confronted by Viṣṇu and pressed into a vulnerable condition (death ‘upon the thighs’), offer him a boon and urge him to ask without hesitation. This sets up the well-known turn where the boon becomes the means for their own defeat.