Shloka 22
Marutta Seeks Saṃvarta’s Priestly Support; Conditions, Truth-Discipline, and Rival Powers
मरुत्त उवाच यावत् तपेत् सहसांशुस्तिष्ेर॑श्वापि पर्वता: । तावल्लोकान्न लभेयं त्यजेयं सड़तं यदि
marutta uvāca | yāvat tapet sahasrāṁśus tiṣṭheran api parvatāḥ | tāval lokān na labheyaṁ tyajeyaṁ saṅgataṁ yadi ||
Marutta said: “O Brāhmaṇa, if I were to abandon the companionship and alliance I have entered into with you, then so long as the thousand-rayed Sun continues to blaze and so long as the mountains stand firm, I would not attain the higher worlds. Such would be the moral consequence of forsaking a pledged association.”
मरुत्त उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse stresses dharma as fidelity to one’s pledged association: abandoning a committed alliance (saṅgata) is treated as a grave ethical breach that destroys merit and blocks attainment of higher worlds.
Marutta speaks to a Brāhmaṇa, declaring that he cannot in good conscience abandon the relationship or agreement he has formed; he frames the consequence in cosmic terms—lasting as long as the Sun shines and mountains endure—to emphasize the seriousness of betrayal.