Shloka 51
Adhyaya 8 — Harishchandra’s Trial: Truth, the Sale of Family, and Bondage to a Chandala
राक्षसो वातिकठिनस्ततः पापतरोऽपि वा ।
विक्रेतुं दयितां प्राप्तो यो न प्राणांस्त्यजाम्यहम् ॥
rākṣaso vātikaṭhinas tataḥ pāpataro ’pi vā /
vikretuṃ dayitāṃ prāpto yo na prāṇāṃs tyajāmy aham
„Selbst wenn einer ein Rākṣasa ist—hart wie der Wind—und noch sündiger; doch wenn er so weit gekommen ist, seine Geliebte zu verkaufen, werde ich mein Leben (meinen Lebensatem) nicht preisgeben, ich werde nicht nachgeben.“
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FAQs
The verse highlights the extremity of adharma: when one’s inner hardness and sin intensify, even the most intimate bonds (symbolized by “dayitā,” the beloved) become commodified. The ethical warning is that moral collapse proceeds by degrees—cruelty and obstinacy culminate in betrayal of what should be protected—yet the ego still clings to life and refuses surrender.
Primarily within Vaṃśānucarita/Carita (narrative episode) rather than Sarga/Pratisarga/Manvantara/Vaṃśa proper. In the Devi Mahatmyam portion of the Markandeya Purana, this functions as dharma-illustrative kathā (exemplary narrative) embedded in the Purāṇic corpus.
“Selling the beloved” can be read symbolically as the surrender of one’s inner śraddhā and refined consciousness to lower impulses (kāma, lobha). The refusal to ‘give up prāṇa’ reflects the tenacity of ahaṅkāra (ego) that persists even when virtue has been traded away—setting the stage for Shakti’s intervention, where divine power restores order by breaking that hardened resistance.