Mahabharata · 1.168.3–4
॥
Devanāgarī
गन्धर्व उवाच
तम् आपतन्तं संप्रेक्ष्य वसिष्ठो भगवान् ऋषिः ॥
वारयाम् आस तेजस्वी हुंकरेणैव भारत ॥
मन्त्रपूतेन च पुनः स तम् अभ्युक्ष्य वारिणा ॥
मोक्षयाम् आस वै घोराद् राक्षसाद् राजसत्तमम् ॥
Transliteration (IAST)
gandharva uvāca
tam āpatantaṃ saṃprekṣya vasiṣṭho bhagavān ṛṣiḥ ||
vārayām āsa tejasvī huṃkareṇaiva bhārata ||
mantrapūtena ca punaḥ sa tam abhyukṣya vāriṇā ||
mokṣayām āsa vai ghorād rākṣasād rājasattamam ||
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
तम् आपतन्तं संप्रेक्ष्य वसिष्ठः भगवान् ऋषिःtam āpatantaṃ saṃprekṣya vasiṣṭhaḥ bhagavān ṛṣiḥhaving seen him rushing forward, the blessed rishi Vasishtha,
वारयाम् आस तेजस्वी हुंकरेण एव भारतvārayām āsa tejasvī huṃkareṇa eva bhārataardent, repelled him with a single sound, "hum!", O Bharata;
मन्त्रपूतेन च पुनः सः तम् अभ्युक्ष्य वारिणाmantrapūtena ca punaḥ saḥ tam abhyukṣya vāriṇāand, sprinkling him with water purified by mantra,
मोक्षयाम् आस वै घोरात् राक्षसात् राजसत्तमम्mokṣayām āsa vai ghorāt rākṣasāt rājasattamamfreed that best of kings from the terrible rakshasa;
गन्धर्वgandharvaoriginal form "gandharva", added to complete the word-by-word coverage
वसिष्ठोvasiṣṭhooriginal form "vasiṣṭho", added to complete the word-by-word coverage
हुंकरेणैवhuṃkareṇaivaoriginal form "huṃkareṇaiva", added to complete the word-by-word coverage
सsaoriginal form "sa", added to complete the word-by-word coverage
घोराद्ghorādoriginal form "ghorād", added to complete the word-by-word coverage
राक्षसाद्rākṣasādoriginal form "rākṣasād", added to complete the word-by-word coverage
Translation
The gandharva said: "Having seen him rushing forward, the ardent, blessed rishi Vasishtha repelled him with a single sound, 'hum!', O Bharata; and, sprinkling him with water purified by mantra, freed that best of kings from the terrible rakshasa."
Version
60559ce85614 · published Jul 12, 2026, 5:29:43 PM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
Here the saint's power shows itself in the ease of the deliverance. It is telling that Vasishtha repels the fearsome man-eater with a single "hum!" and a sprinkling of holy water: where an army is powerless, the word and mantra of an ascetic suffice. Here is a spiritual force that drives out evil without weapons: the consecrated word and water cleanse the possessed man. Thus the text reveals the power of tapas over the demonic; and Vasishtha does not slay the enemy but heals him, expelling the evil that had entered him.