Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 16
ब्राह्मणपूजायां व्युष्टिः — Vyuṣṭi (Merit-Outcome) of Honoring Brāhmaṇas: Kṛṣṇa and Durvāsā
ततो नारायण तेजो व्रतचर्येन्धनोत्थितम् । वक्त्रान्नि:सृत्य कृष्णस्य वल्विरद्भुतकर्मण:
tato nārāyaṇa-tejo vrata-caryendhanotthitam | vaktrān niḥsṛtya kṛṣṇasya valvir adbhuta-karmaṇaḥ ||
Wika ni Bhishma: “Pagkaraan, ang naglalagablab na kapangyarihan ni Nārāyaṇa—na wari’y sinindihan ng panggatong ng mahigpit na panata at pagtalima sa mga sumpa—ay lumabas mula sa bibig ni Kṛṣṇa, ang gumagawa ng mga kababalaghan. Nagpakita ito bilang apoy at sinimulang tupukin ang bundok, kasama ang mga puno, baging, palumpong, mga ibon, mga kawan ng usa, mababangis na hayop, at mga ahas.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights tejas (spiritual potency) arising from disciplined vow-observance (vrata-caryā). It suggests that austerity and dharmic restraint are not merely private virtues but sources of transformative power, capable of manifesting as overwhelming force when aligned with the divine (Nārāyaṇa).
Bhīṣma narrates a miraculous event: Nārāyaṇa’s fiery energy, as if ignited by the ‘fuel’ of ascetic practice, emerges from Kṛṣṇa’s mouth and appears as fire, burning a mountain along with its vegetation and animal life, including birds, deer, fierce creatures, and serpents.