Shloka 15
Kubera’s Arrival and the Disclosure of Agastya’s Curse
Vaiśaṃpāyana–Janamejaya Narrative
देवाश्ष ऋषय: सिद्धा: पितरश्चापि राक्षस । गन्धर्वोरगरक्षांसि वयांसि पशवस्तथा
devāś ca ṛṣayaḥ siddhāḥ pitaraś cāpi rākṣasa | gandharvoragarakṣāṃsi vayāṃsi paśavas tathā ||
Vaiśampāyana berkata: “Para dewa, para ṛṣi, para siddha dan para Pitṛ; demikian juga para rākṣasa; para gandharva, nāga dan roh-roh penjaga yang lain; burung-burung dan juga binatang—semua golongan makhluk ini turut terlibat/berkaitan.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the Mahābhārata’s vision of a morally charged cosmos: events are not isolated to humans alone but resonate across many orders of beings, implying that actions and disruptions of dharma can have universal repercussions.
Vaiśampāyana enumerates various classes of beings—divine, ancestral, semi-divine, and animal—indicating that a significant occurrence in the story draws the attention or participation of the entire living cosmos.