Shloka 24
कर्कोटक-उपदेशः
Karkoṭaka’s Counsel and Nala’s Concealment
कथं भविष्यसि पुनर्मामनुस्मृत्य नैषध । कथं भवागञ्जगामाद्य मामुत्सृज्य वने प्रभो,“निषधनरेश! यदि मैं मर गयी, तो मुझे बार-बार याद करके आपकी कैसी दशा हो जायगी? प्रभो! आज मुझे वनमें छोड़कर आप क्यों चले गये?
kathaṁ bhaviṣyasi punar mām anusmṛtya naiṣadha | kathaṁ bhavān jagāmādya mām utsṛjya vane prabho ||
«يا ملك نِصَدَه، إن متُّ، فكيف ستطيق وأنت تذكرني مرة بعد مرة؟ يا مولاي، كيف مضيت اليوم وتركتني خلفك في هذه الغابة؟»
ब॒हृदश्चव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical weight of abandoning a dependent loved one: remembrance intensifies suffering, and a ruler’s or husband’s duty (dharma) is tested when compassion conflicts with fear, shame, or desperation.
In the Nala–Damayantī episode, Damayantī addresses Nala (the Naiṣadha king) after he has left her in the forest; she questions how he can live with the repeated memory of her and why he departed, abandoning her in the wilderness.