एतस्मिन्न् एव काले तु देवकस्य महात्मनः ॥
दुहितुः स्वयंवरे राजन् सर्वक्षत्रसमागमे ॥
तत्र वै देवकीं देवीं वसुदेवार्थम् आप्तवान् ॥
निर्जित्य पार्थिवान् सर्वान् रथम् आरोपयच् छिनिः ॥
तां दृष्ट्वा देवकीं शौरे रथस्थां पुरुषर्षभः ॥
नामृष्यत महातेजाः सोमदत्तः शिनेर् नृप ॥
etasminn eva kāle tu devakasya mahātmanaḥ ||
duhituḥ svayaṃvare rājan sarvakṣatrasamāgame ||
tatra vai devakīṃ devīṃ vasudevārtham āptavān ||
nirjitya pārthivān sarvān ratham āropayac chiniḥ ||
tāṃ dṛṣṭvā devakīṃ śaure rathasthāṃ puruṣarṣabhaḥ ||
nāmṛṣyata mahātejāḥ somadattaḥ śiner nṛpa ||
"At this very time, o king, at the self-choice of the daughter of great-souled Devaka, at a gathering of all kshatriyas — there Shini, having conquered all the kings, obtained the divine maiden Devaki for Vasudeva's sake and raised her onto the chariot. Seeing that Devaki standing on Shini's chariot, the greatly splendid bull among men, Somadatta, could not endure Shini's deed, o king."
c25232df774e · published Jul 19, 2026, 4:25:13 PM UTC
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Shini wins Devaki not for himself but for Vasudeva: his feat is service, not self-interest. It is telling that from this the feud is born — Somadatta could not endure it: wounded pride lays the foundation of a strife that will stretch across generations. The verse teaches that even a valiant deed, when it wounds another's pride, can sow a lasting enmity; and an offense not released becomes the seed of calamities that sprout many years later.