Ramayana — Bala Kanda, Sarga 63, Shloka 6
विश्वामित्रस्य तपोविघ्नः, मेनकाप्रसङ्गः, महर्षिपदप्रदानम्
Visvamitra’s Austerity Obstructed; Menaka Episode; Conferment of Maharshi Status
दृष्ट्वा कन्दर्पवशगो मुनिस्तामिदमब्रवीत्।अप्सरस्स्वागतं तेऽस्तु वस चेह ममाश्रमे।।।।अनुगृह्णीष्व भद्रं ते मदनेन सुमोहितम्।
dṛṣṭvā kandarpavaśago munis tām idam abravīt | apsaraḥ svāgataṃ te 'stu vasa ceha mamāśrame || anugṛhṇīṣva bhadraṃ te madanena sumohitam ||
Vừa thấy nàng, vị ẩn sĩ bị Kāma chế ngự liền nói: “Hỡi Apsaras, xin chào mừng nàng. Hãy ở lại đây trong đạo tràng của ta. Xin thương xót ta; ta đang bị ái dục làm mê muội. Nguyện nàng được an lành.”
"O Foremost of men! after a long lapse of time a chief nymph called Menaka came to bathe at Pushkara.
FAQs
Dharma requires mastery over desire: even a sage can falter when the mind yields to passion, showing that ethical strength depends on inner discipline (saṃyama).
Viśvāmitra, stirred by desire on seeing Menakā, invites her to stay and openly admits his infatuation.
A cautionary contrast: the virtue needed is restraint, but the verse portrays a lapse—illustrating how quickly tapas can be undermined by kāma.