Shalya Parva Adhyaya 37 Shloka 1 - Mahabharata | Malayalam | Vedapath

Vyasa

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Shloka 1

Saptasārasvata-tīrtha-prasaṅgaḥ | The Saptasārasvata Pilgrimage Account and the Maṅkaṇaka Narrative

Devanagari script

ऑपन--माजल छा जज सप्तत्रिशो5 ध्याय: विनशन

Transliteration

Vaiśampāyana uvāca: tato vinaśanaṃ rājan jagāmātha halāyudhaḥ | śūdrābhīrān prati dveṣād yatra naṣṭā sarasvatī ||

Translation

വൈശമ്പായനൻ പറഞ്ഞു—അതിനുശേഷം, രാജാവേ, ഹലായുധനായ ബലരാമൻ വിനശന തീർത്ഥത്തിലേക്കു പോയി; അവിടെ ശൂദ്രന്മാരോടും ആഭീരന്മാരോടും ഉള്ള ദ്വേഷം മൂലം സരസ്വതി അദൃശ്യമാകുകയുണ്ടായി എന്നു പറയുന്നു।

Word by Word

वैशम्पायनःVaishampayana

उवाचsaid

ततःthen/from there

विनशनम्Vinaśana (a place/pilgrimage spot)

राजन्O king

जगामwent

अथthen/now

हलायुधःhe whose weapon is a plough (Balarama)

शूद्राभीरान्Śūdras and Ābhīras

प्रतिtowards/against

द्वेषात्from hatred/owing to hatred

यत्रwhere

नष्टाvanished/lost

सरस्वतीSarasvatī (river)

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

Janamejaya

Halāyudha (Balarāma)

Vinaśana

Sarasvatī

Śūdras

Ābhīras

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse suggests that sacred action (pilgrimage to a tīrtha) does not automatically purify one’s motive: inner dispositions like dveṣa (aversion/hatred) can accompany religious conduct. It invites reflection on aligning outward dharmic practice with inward ethical intention.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana narrates that Balarāma (Halāyudha) proceeds to the tīrtha called Vinaśana, identified as the place where the Sarasvatī ‘disappears.’ His movement is linked to hostility toward the Śūdras and Ābhīras, indicating a socially charged context behind his journey.