Shloka 23
नारदस्य वच: श्रुत्वा क्रुद्धः प्राज्वलदड्धिरा: । अपिबत् तेजसा वारि विष्ट भ्य सुमहातपा:
nāradāsya vacaḥ śrutvā kruddhaḥ prājvalad aṅgirāḥ | apibat tejasā vāri viṣṭabhya sumahātapāḥ ||
Mendengar kata-kata Nārada, Utathya—putera Aṅgiras—menyala marah bagaikan api. Pertapa agung itu, bersandar pada kuasa tapa-bratanya, menahan air-air itu lalu mula meminumnya habis dengan sinar tejas rohaninya.
अजुन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical tension between spiritual power (tapas/tejas) and self-control: even a great ascetic can be driven by anger to use extraordinary power in a forceful, potentially harmful way, implying that mastery over krodha is integral to dharma.
After hearing Nārada’s statement, Utathya becomes enraged; empowered by his austerities, he restrains the waters and begins to drink them up through his tejas, demonstrating the formidable potency attributed to sages in epic narrative.