Shloka 16
ब्राह्मणपूजायां व्युष्टिः — Vyuṣṭi (Merit-Outcome) of Honoring Brāhmaṇas: Kṛṣṇa and Durvāsā
ततो नारायण तेजो व्रतचर्येन्धनोत्थितम् । वक्त्रान्नि:सृत्य कृष्णस्य वल्विरद्भुतकर्मण:
tato nārāyaṇa-tejo vrata-caryendhanotthitam | vaktrān niḥsṛtya kṛṣṇasya valvir adbhuta-karmaṇaḥ ||
ततो नारायणतेजो व्रतचर्येन्धनोत्थितम् । वक्त्रान्निःसृत्य कृष्णस्य वल्विरद्भुतकर्मणः ॥ अग्निरूपेण संप्रादुर्भूय तं पर्वतं ददाह । सद्रुमं सलतागुल्मं सपक्षिमृगसंघातं सश्वापदसरीसृपम् ॥
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights tejas (spiritual potency) arising from disciplined vow-observance (vrata-caryā). It suggests that austerity and dharmic restraint are not merely private virtues but sources of transformative power, capable of manifesting as overwhelming force when aligned with the divine (Nārāyaṇa).
Bhīṣma narrates a miraculous event: Nārāyaṇa’s fiery energy, as if ignited by the ‘fuel’ of ascetic practice, emerges from Kṛṣṇa’s mouth and appears as fire, burning a mountain along with its vegetation and animal life, including birds, deer, fierce creatures, and serpents.