Shloka 20
Brahmin Conduct, Purificatory Baths, and the Garuḍa–Nectar Episode
Illustrative Narrative
तथापि ब्राह्मणश्चैव न हंतव्यः कदाचन । एनं हत्वा द्विजश्रेष्ठ ब्रह्महा पुरुषो भवेत्
tathāpi brāhmaṇaścaiva na haṃtavyaḥ kadācana | enaṃ hatvā dvijaśreṣṭha brahmahā puruṣo bhavet
তথাপি ব্ৰাহ্মণক কেতিয়াও হত্যা কৰিব নালাগে। হে দ্বিজশ্ৰেষ্ঠ, তাক হত্যা কৰিলে মানুহ ব্ৰহ্মহা—ব্ৰাহ্মণ-হন্তা—হৈ পৰে।
Unspecified (narrative voice within the dialogue context of the chapter)
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: karuna
Sandhi Resolution Notes: तथा अपि → तथापि; ब्राह्मणः च एव → ब्राह्मणश्चैव
FAQs
It teaches an absolute prohibition against killing a brāhmaṇa and warns that doing so incurs the grave sin of brahmahatyā (killing a brāhmaṇa).
Not directly. This śloka is primarily a dharma-ethical injunction about non-violence and the severe consequence of brahmahatyā.
“Brahmahā” means “slayer of a brāhmaṇa,” indicating a person who has committed brahmahatyā, traditionally treated as one of the most serious transgressions in dharma literature.