Shloka 18

Adhyāya 6: Kaṅka (Yudhiṣṭhira) Seeks Refuge in Virāṭa’s Assembly

Devanagari script

कृतानुयात्रा भूतैस्त्वं वरदा कामचारिणि । भारावतारे ये च त्वां संस्मरिष्यन्ति मानवा:,'जो प्राणी तुम्हारा अनुसरण करते हैं, उन्हें तुम मनोवाज्छित वर देती हो। इच्छानुसार विचरनेवाली देवि! जो मनुष्य अपने ऊपर आये हुए संकटका भार उतारनेके लिये तुम्हारा स्मरण करते हैं तथा जो मानव प्रतिदिन प्रातःकाल तुम्हें प्रणाम करते हैं, उनके लिये इस पृथ्वीपर पुत्र अथवा धन-धान्य आदि कुछ भी दुर्लभ नहीं हैं

Transliteration

kṛtānuyātrā bhūtaiś tvaṃ varadā kāmacāriṇi | bhārāvatāre ye ca tvāṃ saṃsmariṣyanti mānavāḥ ||

Translation

اے اپنی مرضی سے گردش کرنے والی دیوی! جو بھوت-پرانی تیرے پیچھے چلتے ہیں، تو انہیں वर دیتی ہے۔ اور جو انسان اپنے اوپر آ پڑے دکھ کے بوجھ کو اتارنے کے لیے تیرا سمرن کریں گے،

Word by Word

कृताhaving been made / done

अनुयात्राfollowing, attendance, accompanying

भूतैःby beings / by creatures

त्वम्you

वरदाgiver of boons

कामचारिणिO one who moves at will

भारावतारेin (the act of) removing the burden / at the burden’s descent

येwho (those who)

चand

त्वाम्you (as object)

संस्मरिष्यन्तिwill remember

मानवाःmen / humans

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

a goddess (varadā, kāmacāriṇī; unnamed in this verse)

bhūta (beings/creatures)

mānavāḥ (humans)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse emphasizes śaraṇāgati through smaraṇa: remembering and honoring a benevolent divine power in times of crisis is portrayed as a means to remove the ‘burden’ of suffering and to gain life-supporting goods (offspring, wealth, grain). Ethically, it frames devotion as a stabilizing refuge that restores hope and order amid adversity.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana describes a goddess characterized as freely roaming and a giver of boons. He states that beings follow her, and that humans who remember her to overcome pressing troubles will find prosperity and desired outcomes readily attainable.