When the great poet Muraari, author of anaRgha-rAghavam nATakam, was a student, he inadvertently happened to fall asleep in class. His face was hanging low, and the teacher did not know that Muraari was asleep as he could not see Murari’s eyes.
So the teacher asked a question directed at the sleeper, and Murari’s neighbors whispered, dArubhootO muraarih = दारुभूतो मुरारि:, meaning “Muraari has turned into a log,” which figuratively meant he was napping.
Muraari heard this sentence somehow and he misinterpreted it as a samasyaa put to him by the teacher, who he saw was intently looking at him.
Although Muraari had fallen a victim to the pressures of sleep during class, he was a genius and even during that half-asleep state, his PRatibhA was active and he was able to complete the samasyaa with a touch of satire at the expense of BhagavAn VishNu, whose wives are Bhoomi and SRee lakshmi.
"एका भार्या प्रकृति-चपलाऽचञ्चला च द्वितीया ।
पुत्रोऽनङ्गस्त्रिभुवनजयी मन्मथो दुर्निवारः ।।
शेषः शय्या शयनमुदधौ वाहनं पन्नगारि: ।
स्मारं स्मारं स्वगृहचरितं दारुभूतो मुरारि:।।”
“ ‘One of my wives is by nature very fickle (moving around too much) while the other one is totally motionless. My son (Manmatha) has no body, but he conquers all the beings of the three worlds, churns up the minds of all (even the self-controlled R^shi-s), and is not defeatable by anyone. My bed is on the serpent SEsha, but my vehicle is the killer of serpents, GaruDa. My sleep (which needs a placid surface) is on the (ever-turbulent) ocean!’ Thus (critically) remembering and reviewing His own family story (full of contradictions and paradoxes) MurAri (BhagavAn VishNu) became frozen (and dejected) like a log!”
Needless to say the teacher and classmates were impressed beyond measure by the quick-witted brilliance and the humor of the samasyA-pooRti!
By the way, anaRgha-rAghavam nATakam is considered a dramatic masterpiece by scholars. Long live the poetic genius of Muraari!
There are पाठभेद-s for the SlOkam, but I chose this version for various subjective reasons (including the fact that this is the version that I have heard for the longest time.)