Shloka 7
Adhyāya 118: Saciva-parīkṣā
Testing and Appointment of Ministers/Servants
अथाजगाम तं देशं केसरी केसरारुण: । गिरिकन्दरजो भीम: सिंहो नागकुलान्तक:
athājagāma taṃ deśaṃ kesarī kesarāruṇaḥ | girikandarajo bhīmaḥ siṃho nāgakulāntakaḥ ||
ಆಮೇಲೆ ಆ ದೇಶಕ್ಕೆ ಕೇಸರಿ ಸಿಂಹವೊಂದು ಬಂತು; ಅದರ ಕೇಶರದಿಂದ ಅದು ಸ್ವಲ್ಪ ಕೆಂಪುಗೋಲಾಗಿ ಕಾಣುತ್ತಿತ್ತು. ಪರ್ವತಗುಹೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಜನಿಸಿದ ಆ ಭೀಕರ ಸಿಂಹವು ನಾಗಕುಲ—ಅಂದರೆ ಗಜಕುಲ—ನಾಶಕನಾದ ಕಾಲದಂತೆ ಇತ್ತು.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse evokes a moral contrast between mere power and righteous restraint: a fearsome predator can become ‘death’ for entire groups when strength operates without dharmic governance. In the broader Śānti-parvan context, such imagery supports reflection on how rulers and the strong must curb destructive impulses and protect communities.
A tawny-maned lion arrives in a certain region. It is described as cave-born, terrifying, and a destroyer of elephant clans—setting a vivid scene of impending devastation and establishing the lion as a formidable, ominous force within the story.