Mahabharata 1.115.21 — Adi Parva, Adhyaya 115, Shloka 21

Ādi Parva, Adhyāya 115 — Mādri’s request; invocation of the Aśvins; birth and naming of the Pāṇḍavas

Devanagari script

एकाधिकशतं पूर्ण यथायोगं विशाम्पते । मांसपेश्यास्तदा राजन्‌ क्रमश: कालपर्ययात्‌,राजन! कालके परिवर्तनसे क्रमश: उस मांसपिण्डके यथायोग्य पूरे एक सौ एक भाग हुए

Transliteration

ekādhikaśataṁ pūrṇaṁ yathāyogaṁ viśāmpate | māṁsapeśyās tadā rājan kramaśaḥ kālaparyayāt ||

Translation

Вайшампаяна сказал: «О владыка народа, о царь — когда время, следуя должному порядку, прошло, тот ком плоти был надлежащим образом, постепенно, разделён на ровно сто одну часть».

Word by Word

• एकाधिकशतम्: one hundred and one (in total)
• एकाधिकशतम्: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: एकाधिकशत
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• पूर्णम्: complete; fully formed
• पूर्णम्: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पूर्ण
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• यथायोगम्: as appropriate; according to due order
• यथायोगम्: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यथायोग
• Form: true

• विशाम्पते: O lord of the people
• विशाम्पते: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: विशाम्पति
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• मांसपेश्याः: lumps/masses of flesh
• मांसपेश्याः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: मांसपेशी
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Plural

• तदा: then
• तदा: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तदा
• Form: true

• राजन्: O king
• राजन्: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: राजन्
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• क्रमशः: gradually; in sequence
• क्रमशः: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: क्रमशस्
• Form: true

• कालपर्ययात्: from the change/passage of time
• कालपर्ययात्: Apadana
• Type: Noun
• Root: कालपर्यय
• Form: Masculine, Ablative, Singular

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• King (addressed as viśāmpati/rājan)
• mass of flesh (māṁsa-piṇḍa implied)
• one hundred and one portions (ekādhikaśata)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse underscores kāla (time) as an ordering force: outcomes unfold ‘in due course’ (kālaparyayāt) and ‘as fitting’ (yathāyogam). Even extraordinary events are framed as proceeding according to an intelligible sequence, reminding the listener that patience and attention to proper process are integral to understanding destiny and lineage.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana describes a miraculous development: a single mass of flesh is gradually separated, over time, into 101 distinct portions. This sets up the account of the unusual births connected with the Kuru lineage (the Kauravas and an additional child), emphasizing sequential formation rather than instantaneous creation.