Mahabharata 3.190.103 — Vana Parva, Adhyaya 190, Shloka 103
अध्याय १९० — वामदेव-वाम्य-वृत्तान्तः
The Vāmadeva Horses Episode and the Ethics of Promise
शेषो भूत्वाहमेवैतां धारयामि वसुन्धराम् । वेदवेत्ता ब्राह्मण देवयज्ञमें स्थित मुझ यज्ञपुरुषका यजन करते हैं। पृथ्वीका पालन करनेवाले क्षत्रियनरेश स्वर्गप्राप्तिकी अभिलाषासे इस भूतलपर यज्ञोंद्वारा मेरा यजन करते हैं। इसी प्रकार वैश्य भी स्वर्गलोकपर विजय पानेकी इच्छासे मेरी सेवा-पूजा करते हैं। मैं ही शेषनाग होकर मेरुमन्दरसे विभूषित तथा चारों समुद्रोंसे घिरी हुई इस वसुन्धराको अपने सिरपर धारण करता हूँ
śeṣo bhūtvāham evaitāṁ dhārayāmi vasundharām | vedavettā brāhmaṇā devayajñe me sthitaṁ mām yajñapuruṣaṁ yajante | pṛthivīpālanakartāraḥ kṣatriya-nareśāḥ svargaprāptim abhīpsavaḥ asmin bhūtale yajñair mām yajante | evaṁ vaiśyā api svargalokavijayecchayā mama sevā-pūjāṁ kurvanti | aham eva śeṣanāgo bhūtvā meru-mandaravibhūṣitāṁ caturbhiḥ samudraiḥ parivṛtāṁ imāṁ vasundharāṁ śirasi dhārayāmi
Dewa itu bersabda: “Dengan menjadi Śeṣa, Aku sahaja yang menanggung bumi ini. Para brāhmaṇa yang mengetahui Veda, teguh dalam pemujaan para dewa, mempersembahkan korban kepada-Ku—Yajña-Puruṣa. Raja-raja kṣatriya, pelindung bumi, demi menggapai syurga, menyembah-Ku di tanah ini melalui upacara korban. Demikian juga para vaiśya, ingin menakluk alam syurga, berkhidmat dan memuja-Ku. Maka Akulah, sebagai Śeṣa-nāga, yang memikul di atas kepala-Ku bumi ini—dihiasi Meru dan Mandara serta dilingkari empat lautan.”
देव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage links cosmic stability with dharma: the same divine principle sustains the world as Śeṣa and is approached through yajña. Different social roles (brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya) express devotion through their appropriate duties, showing that ordered action and worship support both worldly governance and spiritual aims.
A deity speaks, identifying himself as the Yajña-Puruṣa who is worshiped through sacrifices by various groups, and also as Śeṣa-nāga who physically bears the earth—described as adorned with Meru and Mandara and surrounded by the four oceans.
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