Shloka 75

Origins of the Maruts — Across the Manvantaras

Devanagari script

एवं शप्त्वा ऋषिः श्रीमान् जगामाथ स्वमाश्रमम् सरस्वतीभ्यः सप्तभयः सप्त वै मरुतो ऽभवन्

Transliteration

evaṃ śaptvā ṛṣiḥ śrīmān jagāmātha svamāśramam sarasvatībhyaḥ saptabhayaḥ sapta vai maruto 'bhavan

Translation

ครั้นสาปดังนี้แล้ว ฤๅษีผู้รุ่งเรืองก็ไปยังอาศรมของตน จากเหล่าสรัสวตีได้บังเกิด ‘ภยะ’ เจ็ดประการ; และแท้จริงพวกนั้นได้เป็นมรุตทั้งเจ็ด (ลม)

Speakers

• Narrator describing the aftermath; Maṅkaṇaka is the acting sage who departs to his āśrama.

Primary Deities

• Maruts
• Sarasvatī (river-goddess, source locus)

Key Themes

• Etiology of the Maruts (origin narrative)
• Hydro-sacral geography (rivers as generative sources)
• Transformation of ‘fear’ into cosmic forces
• Interweaving of ritual-moral events with cosmological beings

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

{ "primaryRasa": "adbhuta", "secondaryRasa": "bhayanaka", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }

FAQs

How can ‘from the Sarasvatīs’ the seven Maruts arise—what is the intended idea?

The verse frames the Sarasvatī waters as a generative matrix: sacred rivers are not merely locations but productive cosmic agencies. The narrative converts an event at the river into a cosmological outcome—seven forces emerging and being identified with the Maruts.

What does ‘sapta-bhayaḥ’ mean here—literal ‘seven fears’ or named beings?

Both readings are viable in Purāṇic diction. Grammatically it can mean ‘seven fears/terror-forces,’ while contextually it can function as a quasi-proper designation for entities born from the episode. The next pāda resolves their identity: they ‘became the seven Maruts.’

Why does the sage’s return to his āśrama matter in a tīrtha passage?

It marks closure of the human action and shifts attention to the landscape’s enduring consequence. In tīrtha-mahātmya style, the sage’s departure emphasizes that the place (Sarasvatī/Sapta-Sārasvata) retains the transformed power and becomes the lasting referent for pilgrims and reciters.