Shloka 17

Devanagari script

अमानयन्‌ हि मानारहन्‌ वातापिश्न महासुर: । निहतो ब्रह्म॒दण्डेन तालजड्घस्तथैव च,“माननीय ब्राह्मणोंका सम्मान न करनेके कारण ही महान्‌ असुर वातापि और उसी प्रकार तालजंघ ब्रह्मदण्डसे मारे गये

Transliteration

amānayan hi mānārhan vātāpiś ca mahāsuraḥ | nihato brahmadaṇḍena tālajaṅghas tathaiva ca ||

Translation

வைசம்பாயனர் கூறினார்—மரியாதைக்கு உரிய பிராமணர்களை மதிக்காததாலேயே மகா அசுரன் வாதாபி ‘பிரஹ்மதண்டம்’ எனும் பிராமண சக்தியால் கொல்லப்பட்டான்; அதுபோல தாலஜங்கனும் அழிந்தான்.

Word by Word

अमानयन्they did not honor / they disrespected

हिindeed / for

मानार्हान्those worthy of honor

वातापिःVātāpi (name of an asura)

चand

महासुरःthe great demon

निहतःkilled / slain

ब्रह्मदण्डेनby the Brahmin's staff / by the brahma-rod

तालजङ्घःTālajaṅgha (name of an asura)

तथाthus / in the same way

एवindeed / just

चand

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

Vātāpi

Tālajaṅgha

brahmadaṇḍa

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Those who refuse to honor the truly worthy—especially righteous brāhmaṇas and bearers of dharma—invite downfall; spiritual authority (brahmadaṇḍa) is portrayed as a decisive moral force that checks arrogance and irreverence.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana cites exemplars: the asuras Vātāpi and Tālajaṅgha were killed because they did not respect venerable brāhmaṇas; their deaths are attributed to brahmadaṇḍa, i.e., the punitive power of a brāhmaṇa’s curse/ascetic might.