Narada Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 69
Dharma-ākhyāna (Discourse on Dharma): Worthy Charity, Fruitless Gifts, and the Merit of Building Ponds
किमयं सरसीश्रृङ्गेभुवः केन विनिर्मिता । कथं जलं भवेदत्र येन जीवेदयं नृपः ॥ ७० ॥
kimayaṃ sarasīśrṛṅgebhuvaḥ kena vinirmitā | kathaṃ jalaṃ bhavedatra yena jīvedayaṃ nṛpaḥ || 70 ||
แผ่นดินที่ตั้งอยู่บนยอดแห่งสระนี้คืออะไร และผู้ใดเป็นผู้เนรมิต? แล้วน้ำจะเกิดขึ้นที่นี่ได้อย่างไร เพื่อให้พระราชานี้ดำรงชีพได้?
Narada (inquiry within the Narada–Sanatkumara dialogue context)
Vrata: none
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka
FAQs
The verse models the Purāṇic method of seeking truth through precise questioning—probing origin (who created), structure (land on lake-peaks), and sustenance (water for survival), which mirrors the dhārmic impulse to understand how the world is upheld.
Bhakti here is indirect: the verse sets up a dependence on a higher sustaining principle—water and life cannot be assumed but must be understood as provided—preparing the listener to recognize divine governance that later becomes explicit in Vishnu-centered devotion.
No specific Vedāṅga technique is taught in this line; rather, it reflects the analytical spirit that supports Vedāṅga study—careful inquiry and clear formulation of questions, which are essential for disciplines like Vyākaraṇa (precision of meaning) and Jyotiṣa (causal explanation of phenomena) when they appear in context.