Shloka 4
Duḥṣantasya Vana-praveśaḥ
King Duḥṣanta’s Entry into the Forest Hunt
इन्द्रत्वमहों राजायं तपसेत्यनुचिन्त्य वै । त॑ सान्त्वेन नृपं साक्षात् तपस: संन्यवर्तयन्
Vaiśampāyana uvāca: indratvam aho rājāyaṁ tapasety anucintya vai | taṁ sāntvena nṛpaṁ sākṣāt tapasaḥ saṁnyavartayan ||
‘ಅಹೋ! ಈ ರಾಜನು ತಪಸ್ಸಿನಿಂದ ಇಂದ್ರತ್ವವನ್ನು ಬಯಸುತ್ತಾನೆ’ ಎಂದು ಚಿಂತಿಸಿ, ದೇವತೆಗಳು ಸ್ವತಃ ಪ್ರತ್ಯಕ್ಷವಾಗಿ ಸಾಂತ್ವನದಿಂದ ಆ ನೃಪನನ್ನು ತಪಸ್ಸಿನಿಂದ ಹಿಂದಿರುಗಿಸಿದರು।
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Austerity is powerful and can even threaten cosmic offices, but it should be guided by dharma and right intention; gentle counsel and restraint are preferable to conflict when redirecting potentially disruptive ambition.
Seeing the king engaged in intense tapas, the gods suspect he aims to obtain Indra’s position; they appear before him and pacify him with conciliatory words, leading him to withdraw from the austerity.