Shloka 36
अद्टक उवाच स राजास्त्वकृतप्रज्ञ: कामवृत्तश्न पापकृत् । अधर्मेणाभिशास्तूर्वी यस्ते हरति पुष्करम्,अष्टक बोले--जो आपका कमल ले गया हो, वह राजा मन्दबुद्धि, स्वेच्छाचारी और पापात्मा होकर अधर्मपूर्वक इस पृथ्वीका शासन करे
aṣṭaka uvāca | sa rājāstv akṛtaprajñaḥ kāmavṛttaś ca pāpakṛt | adharmeṇābhiśāstūrvīṃ yas te harati puṣkaram ||
Aṣṭaka said: “May that king—undiscerning, driven by desire, and a doer of sin—rule this earth by unrighteous means, he who has taken away your lotus.”
अद्टक उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames unethical rulership as rooted in inner defects—lack of discernment, desire-driven conduct, and sinful action—and marks governance obtained or exercised through adharma as morally blameworthy.
Aṣṭaka speaks a denunciatory statement about an unnamed king who has taken away someone’s lotus (puṣkara), characterizing him as foolish and desire-led, and depicting his rule over the earth as unrighteous.