Mahabharata 1.39.3 — Adi Parva, Adhyaya 39, Shloka 3

आदि पर्व — अध्याय 39: तक्षक–काश्यप संवादः, न्यग्रोधसंजीवनम्, पारिक्षितोपायः

Devanagari script

ततो नातिमहान्‌ काल: समतीत इवाभवत्‌ | अथ देवासुरा: सर्वे ममन्थुर्वरुणालयम्‌

Transliteration

tato nātimahān kālaḥ samatīta ivābhavat | atha devāsurāḥ sarve mamanthur varuṇālayam |

Translation

Kemudian, seolah-olah belum berlalu masa yang panjang, semua dewa dan asura bersama-sama mengacau lautan, kediaman Varuṇa. Kisah ini membingkai pengacauan itu sebagai usaha kolektif yang didorong oleh hasrat akan keuntungan, namun dibayangi akibat moral—ketakutan yang lahir daripada sumpahan—menandakan bahawa kuasa dan pencapaian tidak membebaskan seseorang daripada beban etika perbuatan lampau.

Word by Word

• ततः: then, thereafter
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (तद्-प्रातिपदिकात्)

• न: not
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न

• अति-महान्: very great (excessively large)
• अति-महान्: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महान्त् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• कालः: time
• कालः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: काल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• समतीतः: having passed, elapsed
• Type: Verb
• Root: सम् + अति + इ (क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• इव: as if
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इव

• अभवत्: was, became
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू (धातु)
• Form: Imperfect (लङ्), 3rd, Singular

• अथ: then, next
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अथ

• देव-असुराः: gods and demons
• देव-असुराः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: देव (प्रातिपदिक) / असुर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• सर्वे: all
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• ममन्थुः: churned
• Type: Verb
• Root: मन्थ् (धातु)
• Form: Perfect (लिट्), 3rd, Plural

• वरुण-आलयम्: Varuṇa's abode (the ocean)
• वरुण-आलयम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: आलय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

Speaker

एलापत्र उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Devas
• Asuras
• Varuṇa
• Ocean (Varuṇālaya)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Even extraordinary collective power (devas and asuras together) operates within moral causality: actions and curses generate fear and suffering that persist beyond immediate success, reminding that outcomes do not erase ethical consequences.

What is happening in the narrative?

After a short lapse of time, the devas and asuras churn the ocean (Varuṇa’s abode). In the broader episode, this churning leads to major cosmic events and reveals how alliances form temporarily around shared aims despite underlying rivalry.