Shloka 19

The Churning of the Ocean

Samudra Manthana

Devanagari script

पीयूषभक्षणं राहुर्यावत्कुर्याद्द्विजोत्तम । चंद्रसूर्यौ चोक्तवंतौ राक्षसोऽसौ छलागतः

Transliteration

pīyūṣabhakṣaṇaṃ rāhuryāvatkuryāddvijottama | caṃdrasūryau coktavaṃtau rākṣaso'sau chalāgataḥ

Translation

Wahai dwija yang utama, Rāhu hampir-hampir meneguk amerta; namun Bulan dan Matahari telah memaklumkan kepada para dewa. Raksasa itu datang ke sana dengan tipu daya.

Word by Word

• pīyūṣa-bhakṣaṇam: the eating of nectar
• pīyūṣa-bhakṣaṇam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pīyūṣa (प्रातिपदिक) + bhakṣaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन; तत्पुरुष: ‘nectar-eating’ (act of eating nectar)

• rāhuḥ: Rāhu
• rāhuḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rāhu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा विभक्ति, एकवचन

• yāvat: until/as long as
• yāvat: Kāla (काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yāvat (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय, परिमाण/अवधि-बोधक (until/as long as)

• kuryāt: should do
• kuryāt: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kṛ (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन, परस्मैपद; ‘should do’

• dvija-uttama: O best brāhmaṇa
• dvija-uttama: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvija (प्रातिपदिक) + uttama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन विभक्ति (vocative), एकवचन; कर्मधारय: ‘best of the twice-born’

• candra-sūryau: the Moon and the Sun
• candra-sūryau: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: candra (प्रातिपदिक) + sūrya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा विभक्ति, द्विवचन (dual); द्वन्द्व: ‘the Moon and the Sun’

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, समुच्चयबोधक (and)

• uktavantau: having spoken/said
• uktavantau: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vac (धातु) + uktavant (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: क्तवतु-प्रत्ययान्त (past active participle, ‘having said’), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, द्विवचन; used predicatively with candra-sūryau

• rākṣasaḥ: the demon
• rākṣasaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rākṣasa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• asau: that (one)
• asau: Apposition (विशेष्य-विशेषणभाव)
• Type: Noun
• Root: adas (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; सर्वनाम (pronoun)

• chala-āgataḥ: having come by deceit (in disguise)
• chala-āgataḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: chala (प्रातिपदिक) + āgata (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (past passive participle) āgata ‘come’; तत्पुरुष: ‘come by deceit/in disguise’

Speaker

Narrator (Purāṇic discourse; specific dialogue pair not explicit in the supplied verse)

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: bhayanaka

Secondary Rasa: adbhuta

Geographic Context

Type: celestial_realm

Sandhi Resolution Notes

Sandhi Resolution Notes: rāhuryāvat = rāhuḥ yāvat; kuryāddvijottama = kuryāt dvijottama; coktavaṃtau = ca uktavantau; rākṣaso'sau = rākṣasaḥ asau; chalāgataḥ = chala-āgataḥ.

Characters & Entities

• Rāhu
• Candra (Moon)
• Sūrya (Sun)

FAQs

What event is this verse describing in the Padma Purana?

It refers to the Samudra-manthana episode where Rāhu, by disguising himself, attempts to partake of the nectar (amṛta), but the Moon and Sun reveal him.

Why are the Moon and Sun important in the Rāhu story?

They act as witnesses who expose Rāhu’s deception—an etiological motif later linked to the mythic explanation of eclipses involving Rāhu’s enmity toward the Moon and Sun.

What ethical lesson is implied by this verse?

It highlights that gains sought through deceit are unstable: deception may achieve brief access, but truth and vigilant witnesses bring exposure and consequences.