धृतराष्ट्र उवाच
उक्तो द्वीपस्य संक्षेपो विस्तरं ब्रूहि संजय ॥
यावद् भूम्यवकाशो ऽयं दृश्यते शशलक्षणे ॥
तस्य प्रमाणं प्रब्रूहि ततो वक्ष्यसि पिप्पलम् ॥
वैशंपायन उवाच
एवम् उक्तः स राज्ञा तु संजयो वाक्यम् अब्रवीत् ॥
प्रागायता महाराज षड् एते रत्नपर्वताः ॥
अवगाढा ह्य् उभयतः समुद्रौ पूर्वपश्चिमौ ॥
हिमवान् हेमकूटश् च निषधश् च नगोत्तमः ॥
नीलश् च वैडूर्यमयः श्वेतश् च रजतप्रभः ॥
सर्वधातुविनद्धश् च शृङ्गवान् नाम पर्वतः ॥
एते वै पर्वता राजन् सिद्धचारणसेविताः ॥
तेषाम् अन्तरविष्कम्भो योजनानि सहस्रशः ॥
तत्र पुण्या जनपदास् तानि वर्षाणि भारत ॥
वसन्ति तेषु सत्त्वानि नानाजातीनि सर्वशः ॥
dhṛtarāṣṭra uvāca
ukto dvīpasya saṃkṣepo vistaraṃ brūhi saṃjaya ||
yāvad bhūmyavakāśo 'yaṃ dṛśyate śaśalakṣaṇe ||
tasya pramāṇaṃ prabrūhi tato vakṣyasi pippalam ||
vaiśaṃpāyana uvāca
evam uktaḥ sa rājñā tu saṃjayo vākyam abravīt ||
prāgāyatā mahārāja ṣaḍ ete ratnaparvatāḥ ||
avagāḍhā hy ubhayataḥ samudrau pūrvapaścimau ||
himavān hemakūṭaś ca niṣadhaś ca nagottamaḥ ||
nīlaś ca vaiḍūryamayaḥ śvetaś ca rajataprabhaḥ ||
sarvadhātuvinaddhaś ca śṛṅgavān nāma parvataḥ ||
ete vai parvatā rājan siddhacāraṇasevitāḥ ||
teṣām antaraviṣkambho yojanāni sahasraśaḥ ||
tatra puṇyā janapadās tāni varṣāṇi bhārata ||
vasanti teṣu sattvāni nānājātīni sarvaśaḥ ||
Dhritarashtra said: "You have already given a brief account of the island; now, Sanjaya, tell me in detail. How great is this expanse of earth seen in the mark of the hare? Describe its measure, and then you will tell of the pippala tree." Vaishampayana said: thus questioned by the king, Sanjaya replied: "O great king, these six jewel mountains stretch eastward and plunge deep into the eastern and western oceans on both sides: Himavan, Hemakuta, Nishadha the best of mountains, Nila made of vaidurya, silvery-white Shveta, and the mountain called Shringavan, bound together with every mineral. These mountains, O king, are frequented by siddhas and charanas, and the distances between them are measured in thousands of yojanas. There lie the holy lands, these varshas, O Bharata; in them dwell everywhere beings of the most varied kinds."
06fe0f9096d5 · published Jul 17, 2026, 8:37:17 PM UTC
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Dhritarashtra's question turns the narrative from a general image toward the measure and structure of the world. Sanjaya begins with the mountains as the axes of order: space here is not chaos but marked out by boundaries, holy regions, and the dwelling places of exalted beings.