Shloka 97
Rudra-Śiva: Names, Two Natures, and the Logic of Epithets (रुद्रनाम-बहुरूपत्व-प्रकरणम्)
महाभागे! धर्मज्ञे! सबसे पहले धर्मवेत्ता साधुपुरुष फेनप ऋषियोंका जो धर्म है, उसीका मुझसे वर्णन सुनो ।।
mahābhāge dharmajñe sarvaprathamaṁ dharmavettā sādhupuruṣāḥ phenapaṛṣīṇāṁ yo dharmaḥ, tasya me varṇanaṁ śṛṇu. ujjhanti satataṁ ye te brāhmyaṁ phenotkaraṁ śubham amṛtaṁ brahmaṇā pītam adhvare prasṛtaṁ divi pūrvakāle; tasya phenaṁ yoḍaśaḥ saṅgṛhya satataṁ pibanti, te phenapāḥ.
Wika ni Maheshvara: “O marangal na ginang, O nakaaalam ng dharma—pakinggan mo muna mula sa akin ang tuntunin ng pamumuhay na sinusunod ng mga matuwid na rishi na tinatawag na Phenapas. Noong unang panahon, sa isang paghahandog na yajña, uminom si Brahmā ng pinagpalang amrita na kumalat sa kalangitan; sapagkat ininom ito ni Brahmā, tinawag itong ‘Brāhmya’. Yaong mga asceta na palagiang nagtitipon lamang ng bula ng amritang iyon, paunti-unti, at nabubuhay sa pag-inom nito habang nananatiling nakatuon sa matinding pag-aayuno at pagninilay, ay tinatawag na Phenapas.”
श्रीमहेश्वर उवाच
Educational Q&A
A model of extreme restraint is presented: the Phenapa sages sustain themselves on the barest, purified remnant (foam) of a sacred nectar, illustrating dharma as disciplined self-limitation and unwavering commitment to tapas rather than indulgence.
Maheshvara addresses a noble interlocutor and begins describing the dharma of a particular class of ascetics (Phenapas), explaining the origin of the ‘Brāhmya’ nectar associated with Brahmā’s sacrifice and how these sages live by collecting and drinking only its foam.