Mahabharata 1.31: athaikatriṃśo'dhyāyaḥ

1.31.1

śaunaka uvāca |
bhujaṃgamānāṃ śāpasya mātrā caiva sutena ca |
vinatāyāstvayā proktaṃ kāraṇaṃ sūtanandana || 1 ||

"Saunaka said, 'O son of Suta, thou hast told us the reason why the snakes were cursed by their mother, and why Vinata also was cursed by her son. Thou hast also told us about the bestowal of boons, by their husband, on Kadru and Vinata. Thou hast likewise told us the names of Vinata's sons. But thou hast not yet recited to us the names of the snakes. We are anxious to hear the names of the principal ones.'

1.31.2

varapradānaṃ bhartrā ca kadrūvinatayostathā |
nāmanī caiva te prokte pakṣiṇorvainateyayoḥ || 2 ||

1.31.3

pannagānāṃ tu nāmāni na kīrtayasi sūtaja |
prādhānyenāpi nāmāni śrotumicchāmahe vayam || 3 ||

1.31.4

sūta uvāca |
bahutvānnāmadheyāni bhujagānāṃ tapodhana |
na kīrtayiṣye sarveṣāṃ prādhānyena tu me śṛṇu || 4 ||

"Sauti said, O thou whose wealth is asceticism, from fear of being lengthy, I shall not mention the names of all the snakes. But I will recite the names of the chief ones. Listen to me!

1.31.5

śeṣaḥ prathamato jāto vāsukistadanantaram |
airāvatastakṣakaśca karkoṭakadhanaṃjayau || 5 ||

"Sesha was born first, and then Vasuki. (Then were born) Airavata, Takshaka, Karkotaka, Dhananjaya, Kalakeya, the serpent Mani, Purana, Pinjaraka, and Elapatra, Vamana, Nila, Anila, Kalmasha, Savala, Aryaka, Ugra, Kalasapotaka, Suramukha, Dadhimukha, Vimalapindaka, Apta, Karotaka, Samkha, Valisikha, Nisthanaka, Hemaguha, Nahusha, Pingala, Vahyakarna, Hastipada, Mudgarapindaka, Kamvala Aswatara, Kaliyaka, Vritta, Samvartaka, Padma, Mahapadma, Sankhamukha, Kushmandaka, Kshemaka, Pindaraka, Karavira, Pushpadanshtraka, Vilwaka, [paragraph continues] Vilwapandara, Mushikada, Sankhasiras, Purnabhadra, Haridraka, Aparajita, Jyotika, Srivaha, Kauravya, Dhritarashtra, Sankhapinda, Virajas, Suvahu, Salipinda, Prabhakara, Hastipinda, Pitharaka, Sumuksha, Kaunapashana, Kuthara, Kunjara, Kumuda, Kumudaksha, Tittri, Halika, Kardama, Vahumulaka, Karkara, Akarkara, Kundodara, and Mahodara.

1.31.6

kāliyo maṇināgaśca nāgaścāpūraṇastathā |
nāgastathā piñjaraka elāpatro'tha vāmanaḥ || 6 ||

1.31.7

nīlānīlau tathā nāgau kalmāṣaśabalau tathā |
āryakaścādikaścaiva nāgaśca śalapotakaḥ || 7 ||

1.31.8

sumanomukho dadhimukhastathā vimalapiṇḍakaḥ |
āptaḥ koṭanakaścaiva śaṅkho vālaśikhastathā || 8 ||

1.31.9

niṣṭhyūnako hemaguho nahuṣaḥ piṅgalastathā |
bāhyakarṇo hastipadastathā mudgarapiṇḍakaḥ || 9 ||

1.31.10

kambalāśvatarau cāpi nāgaḥ kālīyakastathā |
vṛttasaṃvartakau nāgau dvau ca padmāviti śrutau || 10 ||

1.31.11

nāgaḥ śaṅkhanakaścaiva tathā ca sphaṇḍako'paraḥ |
kṣemakaśca mahānāgo nāgaḥ piṇḍārakastathā || 11 ||

1.31.12

karavīraḥ puṣpadaṃṣṭra eḻako bilvapāṇḍukaḥ |
mūṣakādaḥ śaṅkhaśirāḥ pūrṇadaṃṣṭro haridrakaḥ || 12 ||

1.31.13

aparājito jyotikaśca pannagaḥ śrīvahastathā |
kauravyo dhṛtarāṣṭraśca puṣkaraḥ śalyakastathā || 13 ||

1.31.14

virajāśca subāhuśca śālipiṇḍaśca vīryavān |
hastibhadraḥ piṭharako mukharaḥ koṇavāsanaḥ || 14 ||

1.31.15

kuñjaraḥ kuraraścaiva tathā nāgaḥ prabhākaraḥ |
kumudaḥ kumudākṣaśca tittirirhalikastathā |
karkarākarkarau cobhau kuṇḍodaramahodarau || 15 ||

1.31.16

ete prādhānyato nāgāḥ kīrtitā dvijasattama |
bahutvānnāmadheyānāmitare na prakīrtitāḥ || 16 ||

"Thus, O best of regenerate ones, have I said the names of the principal serpents. From fear of being tedious I do not give names of the rest. O thou whose wealth is asceticism, the sons of these snakes, with their grandsons, are innumerable. Reflecting upon this, I shall not name them to thee. O best ascetics, in this world the number of snakes baffles calculation, there being many thousands and millions of them.'"

1.31.17

eteṣāṃ prasavo yaśca prasavasya ca saṃtatiḥ |
asaṃkhyeyeti matvā tānna bravīmi dvijottama || 17 ||

1.31.18

bahūnīha sahasrāṇi prayutānyarbudāni ca |
aśakyānyeva saṃkhyātuṃ bhujagānāṃ tapodhana || 18 ||