Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 170
Śiva-nāmānukīrtana-prastāvaḥ
Prologue to the praise of Śiva and the Upamanyu testimony
शतानि सप्त चैवाहं वायुभक्षस्तदा भवम् | एकं वर्षसहसत्रं तु दिव्यमाराधितो मया,फिर शेष सात सौ वर्षोतक केवल हवा पीकर रहा। इस प्रकार मैंने एक सहस्र दिव्य वर्षोतक उनकी आराधना की
śatāni sapta caivāhaṃ vāyubhakṣas tadā bhavam | ekaṃ varṣasahasraṃ tu divyam ārādhito mayā ||
Wika ni Vāsudeva: “Noon, namuhay ako na para bang hangin lamang ang aking ikinabubuhay sa loob ng pitong daang taon. Sa ganitong paraan, sa loob ng isang libong banal na taon, isinagawa ko ang taimtim na pagsamba—puspos ng pag-aayuno at pagninilay.”
वासुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights tapas (austerity) and steadfast devotion: spiritual attainment and moral authority are grounded in sustained self-restraint and long-term, disciplined worship rather than momentary effort.
Vāsudeva recounts an episode of extreme ascetic practice—living on air alone for seven hundred years—and states that he continued devoted worship for a total of one thousand divine years, emphasizing the intensity and duration of his observance.