Shloka 486
Adhyāya 90: Babhruvāhana’s Reception and the Commencement of Yudhiṣṭhira’s Aśvamedha
अयशो महदाप्रोति नरकांश्रैव गच्छति । “जो पुरुष स्त्रीकी रक्षा करना अपना कर्तव्य नहीं मानता अथवा जो स्त्रीकी रक्षा करनेमें असमर्थ है, वह संसारमें महान् अपयशका भागी होता है और परलोकमें जानेपर उसे नरकोंमें गिरना पड़ता है”
ayasho mahad āpnoti narakāṃś caiva gacchati |
Nakula declares that a man who does not regard the protection of women as his duty—or who proves incapable of protecting them—incurs great disgrace in this world and, after death, is destined to fall into the hells. The statement frames women’s protection as a binding obligation within dharma, with both social and otherworldly consequences for neglect.
नकुल उवाच
Educational Q&A
Protection of women is presented as a mandatory aspect of dharma; neglecting it brings severe social dishonor (ayashaḥ) and grave posthumous consequences (going to narakas).
Nakula is speaking in a didactic mode, emphasizing moral accountability: a man’s failure—whether by refusal or incapacity—to safeguard women is condemned both in worldly reputation and in the afterlife.