Shloka 23

Āścarya-kathana: Brāhmaṇa–Nāga Dialogue on Sūrya (Vivasvat) and the ‘Second Sun’ Phenomenon

Devanagari script

वायो: सकाशात्‌ प्राप्तश्ष ऋषिभिर्विघसाशिभि:,वायुसे विघसाशी ऋषियोंने इस धर्मका उपदेश ग्रहण किया। उनसे महोदधिको इस उत्तम धर्मकी प्राप्ति हुई। तत्पश्चात्‌ यह धर्म फिर लुप्त होकर भगवान्‌ नारायणमें विलीन हो गया

Transliteration

vaiśampāyana uvāca | vāyoḥ sakāśāt prāptaś ca ṛṣibhir vighasāśibhiḥ | vāyuse vighasāśī ṛṣayo 'nena dharmam upadeśaṃ gṛhītavantaḥ | tebhyo mahodadhiko 'sya uttamasya dharmasya prāptir abhavat | tataś cāyaṃ dharmaḥ punaḥ luptaḥ san bhagavati nārāyaṇe vilīnaḥ ||

Translation

വൈശമ്പായനൻ പറഞ്ഞു—വായുവിന്റെ സാന്നിധ്യത്തിൽ നിന്ന് വിഘസാശികളായ ഋഷിമാർ ഈ ധർമ്മം പ്രാപിച്ചു. അവരിൽ നിന്നാണ് മഹോദധി ഈ ദുർലഭമായ ഉത്തമധർമ്മം കൈവരിച്ചത്. പിന്നീടത് വീണ്ടും അപ്രത്യക്ഷമായി ഭഗവാൻ നാരായണനിൽ ലയിച്ചു.

Word by Word

वायोःof/from Vāyu

सकाशात्from the presence of; from near

प्राप्तःobtained; received

ऋषिभिःby the sages

विघसाशिभिःby those who eat remnants (vighasa-eaters)

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

Vāyu

Ṛ

Ṛṣis (vighasāśin sages)

Mahodadhi (the great ocean)

Nārāyaṇa

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Dharma is portrayed as a divine principle that is revealed through worthy transmitters (austere sages) and can later be withdrawn, ultimately resting in Nārāyaṇa. Ethical order is thus not merely human convention but a sacred, cyclical revelation tied to divine will and purity of recipients.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana recounts a lineage of transmission: the vighasāśin sages receive dharma from Vāyu; from them the great ocean (Mahodadhi) attains this excellent dharma; afterward the dharma becomes hidden again, merging back into Nārāyaṇa.