Shloka 128
कृतयुगवर्णनम् तथा राजधर्मोपदेशः
Kṛtayuga Description and Instruction on Royal Dharma
तेनैव बालवेषेण श्रीवत्सकृतलक्षणम् | आसीन तं॑ नरव्याप्र पश्याम्यमिततेजसम्,नरश्रेष्ठ राजन! बाहर आकर देखा तो उसी बरगदकी शाखापर उसी बाल-वेषसे सम्पूर्ण जगत्को अपने उदरमें लेकर श्रीवत्सचिह्लसे सुशोभित वह अमिततेजस्वी बालक पूर्ववत् बैठा हुआ है
tenaiva bālaveṣeṇa śrīvatsakṛtalakṣaṇam | āsīnaṃ taṃ naravyāghra paśyāmy amitatejasam, naraśreṣṭha rājan |
Vaiśampāyana disse: “Ó tigre entre os homens, ó melhor dos homens, ó Rei—quando saí, vi novamente aquele mesmo menino, na mesma forma infantil, sentado como antes no ramo daquela nyagrodha, a figueira-de-bengala. Marcado com o auspicioso sinal de Śrīvatsa e ardendo com esplendor imensurável, ele parecia conter misteriosamente o mundo inteiro dentro de si—revelando que o divino pode habitar a forma mais simples e que a percepção humana se curva diante da realidade cósmica.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the ethical-spiritual lesson that the divine may appear in humble, childlike form, and that human pride in knowledge is checked when confronted with a reality vast enough to ‘contain the world’—inviting humility, reverence, and trust in dharma beyond ordinary perception.
The narrator reports that upon returning outside, he again beholds the same radiant child seated on the banyan branch, distinguished by the Śrīvatsa mark and described as mysteriously encompassing the whole world within himself—an awe-inducing reappearance that confirms the child’s supernatural nature.