Sārasvata–Dadhīca Upākhyāna at Sarasvatī Tīrtha
Balarāma’s Pilgrimage Context
पुष्पाण्योषधयश्चेव रोरूयन्ति सहस्रश: । पुनर्नो देवल: क्षूद्रो नूनं छेत्स्यति दुर्मति:
puṣpāṇy oṣadhayaś caiva rorūyanti sahasraśaḥ | punar no devalaḥ kṣūdro nūnaṃ chetsyati durmatiḥ ||
ପୁଷ୍ପ ଓ ଔଷଧିମାନେ ସହସ୍ର ସହସ୍ର କରି ଯେନ ରୋଦନ କଲେ—“ଦୁର୍ବୁଦ୍ଧି ସେଇ କ୍ଷୁଦ୍ର ଦେବଳ ନିଶ୍ଚୟ ପୁନର୍ବାର ଆମକୁ ଛେଦ କରିବ।”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
The verse uses nature’s lament—flowers and medicinal herbs ‘crying’—to underscore the ethical ugliness of needless destruction. It frames harmful action as something that even the natural world recoils from, highlighting how base-minded cruelty violates dharma.
Vaiśampāyana narrates a scene in which the destruction of vegetation is imagined as a collective wailing of plants. The speaker anticipates that Devala, described as petty and ill-intentioned, will again ‘cut down’ or destroy—suggesting repeated harmful acts against living growth.