Shloka 16
तापती–संवरणोपाख्यानम्
The Tapatī–Saṃvaraṇa Episode: Meaning of “Tāpatya”
गतिं चैव न पश्यामि तस्मान्मोक्षाय रक्षस: । सो<हं दुःखार्णवे मग्नो महत्यसुकरे भूशम्,उस निशाचरसे छूटनेका कोई उपाय मुझे नहीं दिखायी देता; अतः मैं अत्यन्त दुस्तर दुःखके महासागरमें डूबा हुआ हूँ
gatiṃ caiva na paśyāmi tasmān mokṣāya rakṣasaḥ | so 'haṃ duḥkhārṇave magno mahaty asukare bhṛśam ||
The brāhmaṇa said: “I see no course of action—no way at all—by which I might be freed from this rākṣasa. Therefore I am sunk in an ocean of sorrow, overwhelmed by a great and grievous distress that is hard to endure.”
ब्राह्मण उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse voices the ethical and existential experience of helplessness: when no practical ‘gati’ (way forward) is visible, suffering feels like an ocean. It highlights the human need for protection and wise counsel, and sets up the dharmic question of how deliverance should be sought when one is trapped by violence or coercion.
A brāhmaṇa, speaking under threat from a rākṣasa, laments that he sees no means of escape or release. His words convey despair and urgency, preparing the scene for intervention, counsel, or a dharmic resolution to the danger posed by the rākṣasa.