Shloka 14
Adhyāya 9: Pratiśruta-Dāna
The Duty to Fulfill Promised Gifts
भीष्म उवाच शृगालो वानरं प्राह पुनरेव नरोत्तम । कि त्वया पातकं कर्म कृतं येनासि वानर:,भीष्मजी कहते हैं--नरश्रेष्ठत इसके बाद सियारने वानरसे पुनः पूछा--“तुमने कौन- सा पाप किया था? जिससे वानर हो गये?”
bhīṣma uvāca | śṛgālo vānaraṃ prāha punar eva narottama | ki tvayā pātakaṃ karma kṛtaṃ yenāsi vānaraḥ ||
Bhishma said: O best of men, the jackal again addressed the monkey: “What sinful deed did you commit, by which you have become a monkey?” The question frames the transformation as a moral consequence, inviting reflection on how unethical actions can lead to degradation of one’s condition.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Actions have consequences: the verse explicitly links a degraded state (becoming a monkey) to pātaka-karma (sinful conduct), prompting ethical self-examination and accountability.
Within Bhishma’s discourse, a jackal questions a monkey about the specific sin that caused his transformation, setting up a moral explanation (often in fable-like form) about wrongdoing and its results.