Shloka 11
Pāṇḍu’s Marriages, Conquests, and Triumphal Return (पाण्डोर्विवाह-विजय-प्रत्यागमनम्)
“यद्यपि मैं चाहती नहीं थी, तो भी उन्होंने मुझ अबलाको अपने तेजसे तिरस्कृत करके नौकापर ही मुझे अपने वशमें कर लिया। उस समय उन्होंने कुहरा उत्पन्न करके सम्पूर्ण लोकको अन्धकारसे आवृत कर दिया था। भारत! पहले मेरे शरीरसे अत्यन्त घृणित मछलीकी-सी बड़ी तीव्र दुर्गन्ध आती थी। उसको मिटाकर मुनिने मुझे यह उत्तम गन्ध प्रदान की थी
yadyapi māṃ naiccham, tathāpi tejasā mām abalāṃ tiraskṛtya naukāyām eva māṃ sva-vaśe cakāra. tadā sa munir ghanaṃ (kuharam) utpādya sarvaṃ lokaṃ tamasāvṛtaṃ cakāra. bhārata! pūrvaṃ mama śarīrāt matsyavat paramā jugupsitā mahā-tīvrā durgandhir āgacchati sma; tāṃ apanīya muninā mahyaṃ eṣā uttamā gandhaḥ pradattā.
“Bagaman hindi ako pumayag, dinaig niya ako—isang babaeng walang tagapagtanggol—sa lakas ng kanyang kapangyarihang espirituwal at isinailalim ako sa kanyang kapangyarihan doon mismo sa bangka. Noon, lumikha ang pantas ng makapal na hamog at tinakpan ang buong pook ng dilim. O inapo ni Bharata, dati’y may kasuklam-suklam na amoy-isda, napakatapang at nakasusulasok, ang aking katawan; inalis iyon ng pantas at ipinagkaloob sa akin ang napakainam na halimuyak na ito.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage highlights how extraordinary power (tejas) can be used to override another’s will, raising ethical tension within the epic. It also shows how later social legitimacy and lineage narratives are intertwined with secrecy and transformation, prompting reflection on dharma when power imbalances are present.
Satyavatī recounts that the sage used his ascetic power to take control of her on a boat, concealing the act by creating fog and darkness. He then removes her former fish-like stench and grants her a pleasing fragrance, explaining her epithet and the concealment of the encounter.