Shloka 1
Āstīka-stuti at Janamejaya’s Sacrifice (आस्तीकस्तुतिः / यज्ञप्रशंसा)
नऔहा-<> ड-ऑ का पज्चाशत्तमो<्ध्याय: शृंगी ऋषिका परीक्षित्को शाप
Janamejaya uvāca: tataḥ sa rājā rājendraḥ skandhe tasya bhujagottamam | muneḥ kṣut-kṣāma āsajya svapuraṃ punar āyayau || mantriṇa ūcuḥ—rājendra! tasmin kāle rājā Parīkṣit kṣudhā-pīḍitaḥ Śamīka-muneḥ skandhe mṛtaka-sarpaṃ nikṣipya punaḥ svāṃ rājadhānīṃ pratyāgāt |
Janamejaya berkata: Maka raja itu, wahai yang terbaik antara raja-raja, dilemahkan oleh lapar, meletakkan seekor ular yang telah mati—yang terkemuka antara segala ular—di atas bahu sang resi, lalu kembali semula ke kotanya. Para menteri berkata: “Wahai Raja! Pada ketika itu Raja Parīkṣit (Parīkṣit), ditimpa derita lapar, setelah meletakkan ular mati di bahu resi Śamīka, pun pulang ke ibu kotanya.”
जनमेजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even a king, when overcome by hunger, anger, or impatience, can commit an act of adharma—here, disrespect toward a sage. The narrative highlights how lapses in self-control and reverence for ascetics can set in motion grave consequences, affecting not only the individual but also the wider moral and political order.
King Parīkṣit, distressed by hunger, places a dead snake on the shoulder of the sage Śamīka and then returns to his capital. This act becomes the immediate cause leading toward the later curse (through Śṛṅgī) and the chain of events culminating in Parīkṣit’s death and Janamejaya’s resolve for vengeance against Takṣaka.