Shloka 144
Ādi-parva Adhyāya 3 — Janamejaya’s Rite, Dhaumya’s Parīkṣā, and Uttanka’s Kuṇḍala Quest (सर्पसत्रप्रस्तावना–गुरुपरीक्षा–उत्तङ्कोपाख्यान)
एवं स्तुवन्नपि नागान् यदा ते कुण्डले नालभत तदापश्यत् स्त्रियौ तन्त्रे अधिरोप्य सुवेमे पर्ट वयन्त्यौ । तस्मिंस्तन्त्रे कृष्णा: सिताश्न तन्तवश्नक्र चापश्यद् द्वादशारं षड्भि: कुमारै: परिवर्त्यमानं पुरुषं चापश्यदश्वंं च दर्शनीयम्,इस प्रकार नागोंकी स्तुति करते रहनेपर भी जब वे उन दोनों कुण्डलोंको प्राप्त न कर सके, तब उन्हें वहाँ दो स्त्रियाँ दिखायी दीं, जो सुन्दर करघेपर रखकर सूतके तानेमें वस्त्र बुन रही थीं, उस तानेमें उत्तंक मुनिने काले और सफेद दो प्रकारके सूत और बारह अरोंका एक चक्र भी देखा, जिसे छः कुमार घुमा रहे थे। वहीं एक श्रेष्ठ पुरुष भी दिखायी दिये। जिनके साथ एक दर्शनीय अश्व भी था। उत्तंकने इन मन्त्रतुल्य श्लोकोंद्वारा उनकी स्तुति की --
evaṁ stuvann api nāgān yadā te kuṇḍale nālabhat tadāpaśyat striyau tantre adhiropya suvemē paṭaṁ vayantyau | tasmiṁs tantre kṛṣṇāḥ sitāś ca tantavaś ca apaśyad dvādaśāraṁ ṣaḍbhiḥ kumāraiḥ parivartyamānaṁ cakraṁ ca apaśyat | puruṣaṁ cāpaśyad aśvaṁ ca darśanīyam |
Mesmo continuando a louvar os Nāgas, como não conseguia obter o par de brincos, ele então viu duas mulheres tecendo um tecido num tear primoroso. Na urdidura, percebeu fios de dois tipos — negros e brancos — e viu também uma roda de doze raios, girada por seis jovens. Ali ainda avistou uma Pessoa nobre e, com ela, um cavalo formoso. Então Uttaṅka os louvou com versos semelhantes a mantras.
राम उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage frames Uttaṅka’s quest within a larger cosmic order: the loom, the black-and-white threads, and the twelve-spoked wheel suggest an underlying structure (often read as time and the regulated movement of the world) that governs outcomes beyond mere effort. Ethical perseverance is affirmed, but success is shown to depend on alignment with a deeper dharmic and cosmic rhythm.
Uttaṅka, still unable to recover the two earrings despite praising the Nāgas, receives a visionary scene: two women weave on a loom; within the warp appear black and white threads and a twelve-spoked wheel turned by six youths; he also sees a distinguished Person accompanied by a beautiful horse. He then offers praise to these figures in mantra-like verses.