Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 88
Śiva-stavarāja: Upamanyu’s Preface and Initiation of the Śarva-Nāma Enumeration
Anuśāsana-parva 17
लम्बनो लम्बितोष्ठ क्ष महामाय: पयोनिधि: । महादन्तो महादंष्टो महाजिह्दो महामुख:
lambano lambitoṣṭhaḥ kṣa mahāmāyaḥ payonidhiḥ | mahādanto mahādaṁṣṭro mahājihvo mahāmukhaḥ ||
Wika ni Vāyu-deva: “Siya ang Sandigan ng di-mabilang na mga daigdig; nakabuka at nakabanat ang mga labi upang lamunin ang buong sansinukob sa oras ng pagkalusaw; ang Dakilang Mangkukulam ng Māyā; ang Karagatang Gatas mismo; may malalaking ngipin at dambuhalang pangil; may malapad na dila at napakalaking bibig.”
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches reverent recognition of the Divine as both sustainer and dissolver of the cosmos. By contemplating these vast, even fearsome, attributes, one cultivates humility and aligns oneself with dharma—the larger cosmic order beyond personal power.
Vāyu-deva is reciting a praise-description (stuti) of the Supreme Lord, listing awe-inspiring epithets that portray the Lord’s cosmic form and powers—especially the capacity to encompass and reabsorb the universe at the time of pralaya.