Shloka 32
Suvarṇa-dāna: Kārttikeya’s Origin and the Defeat of Tāraka (सुवर्णदान-प्रसङ्गे कार्त्तिकेय-उत्पत्ति तथा तारकवधः)
किमर्थ तप्यसे देवि तपो घोरमनिन्दिते । प्रीतस्ते5हं महाभागे तपसानेन शो भने
kimartha tapyase devi tapo ghoram anindite | prītas te 'haṃ mahābhāge tapasānena śobhane ||
ಹೇ ದೇವಿ, ಅನಿಂದಿತೆ! ನೀನು ಏಕೆ ಇಂತಹ ಘೋರ ತಪಸ್ಸಿನಿಂದ ನಿನ್ನನ್ನೇ ಕಾಡಿಕೊಳ್ಳುತ್ತೀಯೆ? ಹೇ ಶೋಭನೆ, ಮಹಾಭಾಗೆ! ನಿನ್ನ ಈ ತಪಸ್ಸಿನಿಂದ ನಾನು ಅತ್ಯಂತ ಸಂತುಷ್ಟನಾಗಿದ್ದೇನೆ. ಹೇ ದೇವಿ, ನಿನ್ನ ಇಚ್ಛೆಯಂತೆ ವರವನ್ನು ಬೇಡು.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Severe austerity (tapas) is portrayed as spiritually efficacious and capable of winning divine approval; when such merit is acknowledged, it is ethically framed as deserving a boon aligned with one’s rightful desire.
Bhīṣma narrates a scene in which he addresses a goddess-like, virtuous figure (Surabhī), asks why she undertakes harsh austerities, declares his satisfaction with her tapas, and encourages her—before Indra (Puraṃdara)—to request a boon.