Shloka 31

Adhyāya 283: Varṇa-vṛtti, Nyāya-ārjana, and the Decline-and-Restoration of Dharma (वर्णवृत्तिः न्यायार्जनं च)

Devanagari script

मन्युना च महाभीमा महाकाली महेश्वरी

Transliteration

manyunā ca mahābhīmā mahākālī maheśvarī

Translation

मन्युना च महाभीमा महाकाली महेश्वरी ।

Word by Word

• मन्युना: by/with wrath
• मन्युना: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: मन्यु
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Singular

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• महाभीमा: very terrible (she)
• महाभीमा: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महाभीम
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• महाकाली: Mahākālī
• महाकाली: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: महाकाली
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• महेश्वरी: the Great Goddess; Maheśvarī
• महेश्वरी: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: महेश्वरी
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

दक्ष उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Dakṣa
• Mahākālī
• Maheśvarī

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the ethical and theological idea that divine power can manifest as fierce, wrathful energy to uphold cosmic order (dharma). The Goddess is invoked not merely as terrifying, but as sovereign—suggesting that even fearsome force has a rightful place when aligned with protection and restoration of order.

What is happening in the narrative?

Dakṣa is describing or invoking the Goddess in her formidable aspect: Mahākālī, characterized by overwhelming terror and empowered by wrath (manyu). The line functions as an epithet-rich identification, emphasizing her supreme status (maheśvarī) and her fearsome, corrective potency.