अष्टादशसहस्राणि नोचुर्वै किंचिदुत्तरम् । अष्टादशसहस्रेषु भृगुकोपभयान्नृप । उक्तं च तालकं हस्ते यस्य तस्येदमुत्तरम्
aṣṭādaśasahasrāṇi nocurvai kiṃciduttaram | aṣṭādaśasahasreṣu bhṛgukopabhayānnṛpa | uktaṃ ca tālakaṃ haste yasya tasyedamuttaram
ثمانيةَ عشرَ ألفًا منهم لم ينطقوا بجوابٍ قطّ. ومن بين هؤلاء الثمانيةَ عشرَ ألفًا، أيها الملك، خوفًا من غضب بهṛغو (Bhṛgu)، قالوا: «مَن كان القِفْلُ في يده—فالحكمُ له.»
Narrator (contextual Purāṇic narrator within Revā Khaṇḍa)
Tirtha: Revā-kṣetra sabhā-city (unnamed)
Type: kshetra
Listener: nṛpa (king)
Scene: A vast assembly of brāhmaṇas sits in uneasy silence; faces show apprehension. One figure holds a ‘tālaka’ (bolt/bar) in hand, becoming the decisive sign; Bhṛgu’s stern presence looms, the king watches anxiously.
Fear of power can silence conscience; dharma collapses when truth is replaced by expedient verdicts.
Bhṛgukaccha remains the contextual sacred locale, though the verse emphasizes moral failure within that setting.
None; it narrates an unjust decision motivated by भय (fear).