Shloka 2

उत्तङ्कोपाख्यानप्रारम्भः — Uttanka’s Tapas, Viṣṇu-stuti, and the Dhundhumāra Prophecy

Opening

Devanagari script

स्थापयित्वा च मर्यादा: स्वयम्भुविहिता: शुभा: । वन॑ पुण्ययश:कर्मा रमणीयं प्रवेक्ष्यति,उनका यश तथा कर्म सभी परम पावन होंगे। वे ब्रह्माजीकी चलायी हुई मंगलमयी मर्यादाओंकी स्थापना करके (तपस्याके लिये) रमणीय वनमें प्रवेश करेंगे

Transliteration

sthāpayitvā ca maryādāḥ svayambhuvihitāḥ śubhāḥ | vanaṁ puṇyayaśaḥkarmā ramaṇīyaṁ pravekṣyati ||

Translation

സ്വയംഭൂ (ബ്രഹ്മാവ്) വിധിച്ച മംഗളകരമായ ധർമ്മമര്യാദകൾ സ്ഥാപിച്ച്—പുണ്യകരമായ യശസ്സും കർമ്മവും ഉള്ളവനായി—അവൻ മനോഹരമായ വനത്തിലേക്ക് പ്രവേശിക്കും.

Word by Word

स्थापयित्वाhaving established

चand

मर्यादाःboundaries/ordinances

स्वयम्भुविहिताःordained by Svayambhū (Brahmā)

शुभाःauspicious

वनम्forest

पुण्ययशःकर्माone whose fame and deeds are meritorious

रमणीयम्delightful

प्रवेक्ष्यतिwill enter

Speaker

मार्कण्डेय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Mārkaṇḍeya

Svayambhū (Brahmā)

vana (forest)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Dharma is upheld by consciously establishing maryādā—clear ethical boundaries and norms—grounded in authoritative, cosmic order (here attributed to Svayambhū/Brahmā). True renown is not mere fame but the moral purity of one’s actions, which becomes a source of sanctity for oneself and others.

What is happening in the narrative?

Mārkaṇḍeya describes a virtuous figure who, after setting in place auspicious rules of conduct, withdraws into a beautiful forest—suggesting a transition from worldly life to disciplined practice (tapas) and a dharma-centered mode of living.