Shloka 154
Adhyaya 8 — Harishchandra’s Trial: Truth, the Sale of Family, and Bondage to a Chandala
अथापश्यत् पुनरपि स्वर्गस्थः स नराधिपः ।
नीयते मुक्तकेशी सा दीना विवसना बलात् ॥
athāpaśyat punar api svargasthaḥ sa narādhipaḥ | nīyate muktakeśī sā dīnā vivasanā balāt ||
ثم إنّ ذلك الملك، وهو قائمٌ في السماء، رأى مرةً أخرى: امرأةً—شَعرُها مُرسَل، بائسةً وعاريةً—تُسحَب قسرًا بعنف.
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FAQs
Even while enjoying heavenly status, the king is confronted with visions of suffering—suggesting that unresolved adharma (or consequences tied to curses and moral causality) can intrude upon pleasure and pride. The imagery of forced humiliation underscores the purāṇic warning that social power does not exempt one from moral law.
Primarily falls under Vaṃśānucarita/Carita (narrative of persons and events) rather than sarga/pratisarga/manvantara/vaṃśa proper; it is an ethical-illustrative episode embedded in the larger purāṇic discourse.
Loose hair and nakedness often symbolize loss of protection, dignity, and social order—an externalization of inner disorder. The ‘seen in heaven’ motif can be read as the mind’s inescapable witnessing (sākṣitva) of karmic residues even amid apparent prosperity.