Shloka 24
अध्याय ३४ — एलापत्रस्योपदेशः
Elāpatra’s Counsel on the Nāgas’ Deliverance
अभवंश्वामृतस्पर्शाद् दर्भास्ते5थ पवित्रिण: । एवं तदमृतं तेन हृतमाह्तमेव च । द्विजिद्वाश्व कृता: सर्पा गरुडेन महात्मना,तभीसे पवित्र अमृतका स्पर्श होनेके कारण कुशोंकी “पवित्री” संज्ञा हो गयी। इस प्रकार महात्मा गरुडने देवलोकसे अमृतका अपहरण किया और सर्पोंके समीपतक उसे पहुँचाया; साथ ही सपोंको द्विजिद्द (दो जिह्वाओंसे युक्त) बना दिया
abhavaṁś cāmṛta-sparśād darbhās te ’tha pavitriṇaḥ | evaṁ tad amṛtaṁ tena hṛtam āhṛtam eva ca | dvijihvāś ca kṛtāḥ sarpā garuḍena mahātmanā ||
Śakra disse: “Por terem tocado o néctar da imortalidade, aquelas ervas darbha passaram a ser chamadas ‘pavitrī’, de natureza purificadora. Assim, esse amṛta foi arrebatado e levado pelo magnânimo Garuḍa, que o trouxe até bem perto das serpentes. Além disso, Garuḍa fez com que as serpentes se tornassem ‘de duas línguas’.”
शक्र उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse links sacred purity to contact with what is supremely pure (amṛta), explaining why darbha/kuśa is ritually purifying, while also stressing that extraordinary acts (like Garuḍa’s seizure of amṛta) carry lasting consequences for others (the serpents becoming two-tongued).
Indra (Śakra) recounts that Garuḍa stole the amṛta from the gods, brought it near the serpents, and that the darbha grass touched by the amṛta gained the designation ‘pavitrī’; additionally, the serpents were made forked-tongued (dvijihvāḥ) by Garuḍa.