Shloka 4
Adhyaya 7 — Harishchandra Tested by Vishvamitra: The Gift of the Kingdom and the Pandava Curse-Backstory
स कदाचिन्महाबाहुररण्येऽनुसरन् मृगम् ।
शुश्राव शब्दमसकृत् त्रायस्वेति च योषिताम् ॥
sa kadācin mahābāhur araṇye 'nusaran mṛgam /
śuśrāva śabdam asakṛt trāyasv eti ca yoṣitām
ഒരു പ്രാവശ്യം ആ മഹാബാഹു വനത്തിൽ മാൻ പിന്തുടരുമ്പോൾ, സ്ത്രീകൾ ‘രക്ഷിക്കൂ, രക്ഷിക്കൂ!’ എന്ന് കരയുന്ന ശബ്ദം വീണ്ടും വീണ്ടും കേട്ടു.
{ "primaryRasa": "karuna", "secondaryRasa": "bhakti", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }
FAQs
The verse sets up a dharmic test: hearing repeated cries of “Save us!” obliges a capable person—especially one described as mahābāhu (heroic/royal)—to respond. It foregrounds rakṣā-dharma (the duty to protect), a recurring ethical axis in Purāṇic narratives.
This verse is primarily narrative (ākhyāna) rather than a direct instance of sarga/pratisarga/vaṁśa/manvantara/vaṁśānucarita. At most, it supports vaṁśānucarita indirectly if the ‘mighty-armed’ figure is a king/hero within a lineage account, but the verse itself does not state genealogy.
Symbolically, the forest (araṇya) often represents liminality and moral uncertainty; the deer-chase suggests distraction or pursuit of a fleeting objective. The repeated plea “trāyasva” functions as the awakening call of dharma/compassion that interrupts mere pursuit and redirects the hero toward protection and right action.