Mahabharata 3.232.3 — Vana Parva, Adhyaya 232, Shloka 3
Duryodhana’s Śaraṇāgati and the Pāṇḍavas’ Resolve
Gandharva Encounter
स्वाह्मोवाच दक्षस्याहं प्रिया कन्या स्वाहा नाम महाभुज । बाल्यात्प्रभृति नित्यं च जातकामा हुताशने
mārkaṇḍeya uvāca | svāhā uvāca dakṣasyāhaṃ priyā kanyā svāhā nāma mahābhuja | bālyātprabhṛti nityaṃ ca jātakāmā hutāśane ||
സ്വാഹാ പറഞ്ഞു—മഹാബാഹോ! ഞാൻ പ്രജാപതി ദക്ഷന്റെ പ്രിയ പുത്രി; എന്റെ പേര് സ്വാഹാ. ബാല്യകാലം മുതൽ തന്നെ ഞാൻ നിത്യം ഹുതാശനൻ (അഗ്നിദേവൻ) പ്രതി ആഗ്രഹവും ആഴമുള്ള അനുരാഗവും വഹിച്ചുവരുന്നു.
मार्कण्डेय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames desire as a powerful inner force that can persist from early life; ethically, it invites reflection on how personal longing—especially toward the divine—should be understood, acknowledged, and guided within dharmic boundaries rather than denied or left unchecked.
Within Markandeya’s narration, Svāhā introduces herself to a heroic listener, identifying her parentage as Dakṣa’s daughter and confessing that she has long harbored love/desire for Agni (Hutāśana), setting up the ensuing episode about her relationship with the fire-god.
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