Shloka 3
Śārṅgaka-stuti to Agni during the Khāṇḍava Conflagration (शार्ङ्गक-स्तुतिः / अग्नि-स्तुतिः)
उपाय: परिदृष्टो मे यथा त्वं धक्ष्यसेडनघ । कालं च कंचित् क्षमतां ततस्त्वं धक्ष्यसेडनल,“अनघ! तुम जिस प्रकार खाण्डववनको जलाओगे, वह उपाय तो मुझे सूझ गया है; किंतु उसके लिये तुम्हें कुछ समयतक प्रतीक्षा करनी पड़ेगी। अनल! इसके बाद तुम खाण्डववनको जला सकोगे
vaiśampāyana uvāca | upāyaḥ paridṛṣṭo me yathā tvaṃ dhakṣyase 'n-agha | kālaṃ ca kañcit kṣamatāṃ tatas tvaṃ dhakṣyase 'nala ||
毗湿摩波耶那曰：“无垢者啊，我已洞见你将焚烧罕陀婆林之法。但你须暂且忍耐，等待一段时日；其后，阿那罗（Anala）啊，你便能使罕陀婆燃起大火。”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights that even when a goal and its method are known, success depends on proper timing and patient endurance (kṣamā). Action is to be aligned with opportunity (kāla), not merely with desire.
The narrator indicates that a workable plan has been found for Anala/Agni to burn the Khāṇḍava forest, but Agni must wait for a suitable period; only after that interval will the burning be possible.