SB 9.16.31 · Srimad-Bhagavatam

Devanagari

यो वै हरिश्चन्द्रमखे विक्रीत: पुरुष: पशु: । स्तुत्वा देवान् प्रजेशादीन् मुमुचे पाशबन्धनात् ॥ ३१ ॥

Verse text

yo vai hariścandra-makhe vikrītaḥ puruṣaḥ paśuḥ stutvā devān prajeśādīn mumuce pāśa-bandhanāt

Synonyms

yaḥ — he who (Śunaḥśepha) ; vai — indeed ; hariścandra — makhe — in the sacrifice performed by King Hariścandra ; vikrītaḥ — was sold ; puruṣaḥ — man ; paśuḥ — sacrificial animal ; stutvā — offering prayers ; devān — to the demigods ; prajā — īśa — ādīn — headed by Lord Brahmā ; mumuce — was released ; pāśa — bandhanāt — from being bound with ropes like an animal .

Translation

Śunaḥśepha’s father sold Śunaḥśepha to be sacrificed as a man-animal in the yajṣa of King Hariścandra. When Śunaḥśepha was brought into the sacrificial arena, he prayed to the demigods for release and was released by their mercy.

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

Śunaḥśepha was sold by his father to be sacrificed as a man-animal in the sacrifice of King Hariścandra. Śunaḥśepha prayed to the devatās headed by Brahmā, and was freed from being sacrificed. Who was Śunaśepha? That is described in this verse. At the sacrifice performed by Hariścandra, Rohita, who was supposed to be the son to be sacrificed, bought the middle son of Ajīgarta named Śunaḥśepha as the sacrificial animal, since the father Ajīgarta had more affection for his eldest and youngest sons. Śunaḥśepha praised the devatās and became free from the bondage of being an animal.

Purport

Here is a description of Śunaḥśepha. When Hariścandra was to sacrifice his son Rohita, Rohita arranged to save his own life by purchasing Śunaḥśepha from Śunaḥśepha’s father to be sacrificed in the yajṣa. Śunaḥśepha was sold to Mahārāja Hariścandra because he was the middle son, between the oldest and the youngest. It appears that the sacrifice of a man as an animal in yajṣa has been practiced for a very long time.