Shloka 53

Devanagari script

तेजो5पहारी बलहा मुदितो<र्थोडजितोडवर: । गम्भीरघोषो गम्भीरो गम्भीरबलवाहन:,१९१ तेजोपहारी--दूसरोंके तेजको हर लेनेवाले, १९२ बलहा--बलनामक दैत्यका वध करनेवाले, १९३ मुदित:--आनन्दस्वरूप, १९४ अर्थ:--अर्थस्वरूप, १९५ अजित: --अपराजित, १९६ अवरः:--जिनसे श्रेष्ठ दूसरा कोई नहीं है वे भगवान्‌ शिव, १९७ गम्भीरघोष:--गम्भीर घोष करनेवाले, १९८ गम्भीर:-गाम्भीर्ययुक्त,.. १९९ गम्भीरबलवाहन:--अगाध बलशाली वृषभपर सवारी करनेवाले

Transliteration

Vāyudeva uvāca: tejopahārī balahā mudito 'rtho 'jito 'varaḥ | gambhīraghoṣo gambhīro gambhīrabalavāhanaḥ ||

Translation

വായു പറഞ്ഞു— “അവൻ മറ്റുള്ളവരുടെ തേജസ് അപഹരിക്കുന്നവൻ; ‘ബല’ എന്ന ദൈത്യനെ സംഹരിച്ചവൻ; ആനന്ദസ്വരൂപനും അർത്ഥസ്വരൂപനും. അവൻ അജിതൻ; അവനെക്കാൾ ശ്രേഷ്ഠൻ ആരുമില്ല. അവന്റെ നാദം ഗംഭീരം, സ്വഭാവം ഗംഭീരം, അവന്റെ വാഹനം അഗാധബലം വഹിക്കുന്നു.”

Word by Word

तेजोपहारीone who steals/withdraws others’ splendor

बलहाslayer of Bala

मुदितःjoyful; delighted

अर्थःmeaning; purpose; wealth (as the very ‘artha’)

अजितःunconquered; invincible

अवरःunsurpassed; having none superior

गम्भीरघोषःone whose sound/roar is deep

गम्भीरःdeep; profound; grave

गम्भीरबलवाहनःone whose mount/vehicle has immense strength (i.e., riding the mighty bull)

Speaker

वायुदेव उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vāyudeva

Śiva

Bala (daitya)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse teaches reverence for the supreme divine principle embodied by Śiva: he humbles borrowed brilliance (pride), destroys demonic obstruction (Bala), and represents profound steadiness and invincibility—qualities to be cultivated ethically as depth, restraint, and reliance on dharma rather than mere display of power.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vāyudeva is reciting a sequence of honorific names (nāma/guṇa-kīrtana) describing Śiva. Each epithet highlights a facet of Śiva’s power and character—his supremacy, his deep and awe-inspiring presence, and his role as destroyer of a demon—within a devotional praise passage in the Anuśāsana Parva.