Śoka-śamana: Kṛṣṇa’s Consolation and Nārada’s Exempla to Sṛñjaya
Chapter 29
सर्वा रथगता: कन्या रथा: सर्वे चतुर्युजः । शतं शतं रथे नागा: पद्मिनो हेममालिन:
sarvā rathagatāḥ kanyā rathāḥ sarve caturyujaḥ | śataṃ śataṃ rathe nāgāḥ padmino hemamālinaḥ ||
风神伐由说道:“众少女皆坐于战车之上。每辆战车由四马牵引。每车之后,又随行百头大象——‘莲相(Padmin)’之象——颈饰金环花鬘,额顶带有莲花纹记。”
वायुदेव उवाच
The verse primarily offers descriptive narration rather than direct moral instruction; implicitly, it highlights the cultural ideal of auspicious order and royal magnificence—where prosperity and careful arrangement (well-yoked chariots, auspiciously marked elephants) signify legitimacy, status, and the outward signs of a well-governed realm.
Vāyudeva describes a grand procession: maidens seated in separate chariots, each chariot drawn by four horses, and each accompanied by a large retinue of auspicious ‘Padmin’ elephants adorned with golden garlands and lotus emblems.