Shloka 3
गङ्गाधारणम् (Gaṅgādhāraṇa) — Śiva Bears the Descent of Gaṅgā
स राज्यं सचिवे न्यस्य हृदयेन विदूयता । जगाम हिमवत्पाश्वं तपस्तप्तुं नरेश्वर,नरेश्वरर! उन महाबाहुने जब यह सुना कि महात्मा कपिलद्दधारा हमारे (साठ हजार) पितरोंकी भयंकर मृत्यु हुई है और वे स्वर्गप्राप्तिसे वंचित रह गये हैं तब उन्होंने व्यथित हृदयसे अपना राज्य मन्त्रीको सौंप दिया और स्वयं हिमालयके शिखरपर तपस्या करनेके लिये प्रस्थान किया
sa rājyaṃ sacive nyasya hṛdayena vidūyatā | jagāma himavat-pārśvaṃ tapas taptuṃ nareśvara ||
హృదయం వ్యథతో చీలిపోతుండగా ఆ నరేశ్వరుడు రాజ్యాన్ని మంత్రికి అప్పగించి, తపస్సు చేయుటకు హిమవంతుని పర్వతప్రాంతానికి బయలుదేరెను.
लोगश उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights responsible kingship and dharma: when confronted with a grave ancestral calamity, the ruler does not cling to power but delegates governance and turns to tapas as a higher, disciplined means to seek restitution and uplift for the ancestors. It underscores pitṛ-dharma (duty toward forefathers) and the ethical priority of inner resolve over royal comfort.
After hearing that the sage Kapila has caused the terrible death of his forefathers (the famed sixty thousand) and that they are barred from heaven, the king—deeply distressed—hands over the kingdom to his minister and goes to the Himālaya to perform austerities, aiming to find a remedy through ascetic effort.