Shloka 24
Dāna-Śreṣṭhatā: On the Superiority of Giving
Maitreya–Vyāsa Exemplum
धनं धान्यं प्रियान् दारान् यानं वासस्तथादभुतम् । श्रियं दृष्टवा मनुष्याणामसूयामि निरर्थकम्
dhanaṁ dhānyaṁ priyān dārān yānaṁ vāsas tathādbhūtam | śriyaṁ dṛṣṭvā manuṣyāṇām asūyāmi nirarthakam ||
حين كنت أرى ما لدى الناس من مالٍ وحبوب، وزوجاتٍ محبوبات، ومراكبَ حسنة، وملابسَ عجيبة، ورخاءٍ ونعمة، كنتُ—من غير سببٍ حقّ—أحترق حسدًا لهم.
कीट उवाच
Educational Q&A
Causeless envy (asūyā) is futile and self-corroding: merely seeing others’ prosperity can trigger resentment, but such jealousy has no righteous basis and undermines one’s own ethical and mental well-being.
The speaker, identified as a kīṭa (insect), confesses a prior habit of resenting humans upon seeing their comforts—wealth, food, spouses, vehicles, and fine clothing—thereby illustrating how envy can arise from comparison rather than from any actual harm.