Shloka 11
प्रलय-प्रक्रिया (Pralaya Process) — Guṇa-Withdrawal and Pratisaṃcara
शक्र उवाच कथं त्वया बलिस्त्यक्त: किमर्थ वा शिखण्डिनि । कथं च मां न जह्यास्त्वं तन्मे ब्रूहि शुचिस्मिते,इन्द्रने पूछा--वेणी धारण करनेवाली लक्ष्मी! तुमने बलिका कैसे और किसलिये त्याग किया है? शुचिस्मिते! तुम मेरा त्याग किस प्रकार नहीं करोगी? यह मुझे बताओ
śakra uvāca kathaṃ tvayā balis tyaktaḥ kimarthaṃ vā śikhaṇḍini | kathaṃ ca māṃ na jahyās tvaṃ tan me brūhi śucismite ||
Śakra (Indra) berkata: “Bagaimanakah engkau meninggalkan Bali, dan atas sebab apa, wahai wanita berambut kepang? Dan bagaimanakah engkau tidak akan meninggalkan aku? Katakanlah kepadaku, wahai yang senyumannya suci dan lembut.”
शक्र उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames prosperity (Śrī) as conditional rather than permanent: Indra asks why she left Bali and seeks assurance she will not leave him. The ethical implication is that sovereignty and success depend on sustaining dharma and right conduct; when those supports fail, fortune departs.
Indra (Śakra) addresses a divine feminine figure—described with epithets like “braided-haired” and “pure-smiling”—and questions her about her departure from King Bali. He then asks how she will refrain from abandoning him, seeking the reason and the principle governing her allegiance.