Shloka 1636
Aṣṭāvakra’s Visit to Kubera: Hospitality, Temptation, and the Ethics of Restraint (अष्टावक्र-वैश्रवणोपाख्यानम्)
तत्प्रसादान्मया प्राप्तं ब्राह्मुण्यं दुर्लभ महत् | तदनन्तर विश्वामित्रजीने कहा, 'राजन्! जिस समय मैं क्षत्रिय था, उन दिनोंकी बात है, मेरे मनमें यह दृढ़ संकल्प हुआ कि मैं ब्राह्मण हो जाऊँ--यही उद्देश्य लेकर मैंने भगवान् शंकरकी आराधना की। और उनकी कृपासे मैंने अत्यन्त दुर्लभ ब्राह्मणत्व प्राप्त कर लिया'
tatprasādān mayā prāptaṃ brāhmaṇyaṃ durlabhaṃ mahat |
“By his grace, I attained the great and exceedingly rare state of brahminhood.” Then Viśvāmitra said: “O King, when I was still a kṣatriya, I formed a firm resolve: ‘I shall become a brāhmaṇa.’ With that aim I worshipped Lord Śaṅkara (Śiva), and through his favor I obtained this difficult-to-attain spiritual status.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage emphasizes that lofty spiritual status is not merely inherited but can be attained through firm resolve, disciplined worship/austerity, and—decisively—divine grace; true 'brāhmaṇya' is presented as a rare ethical-spiritual attainment.
Within Vaiśaṃpāyana’s narration, Viśvāmitra recounts to a king that he once lived as a kṣatriya, resolved to become a brāhmaṇa, worshipped Śaṅkara for that aim, and by Śiva’s favor obtained the rare state of brahminhood.