Shloka 46
Nāradasya Rājadharma-praśnāḥ
Nārada’s Examination of Royal Ethics
कच्चित् त्वां नावजानन्ति याजका: पतितं यथा । उग्रप्रतिग्रहीतारं कामयानमिव स्त्रिय:
kaccit tvāṃ nāvajānanti yājakāḥ patitaṃ yathā | ugrapratigrahītāraṃ kāmayānam iva striyaḥ ||
Nārada said: “Do the people, by any chance, not hold you in contempt—just as pure priests disdain a fallen sacrificer, and as women disdain a man driven by lust—because you are known as one who accepts gifts harshly, taking excessive exactions?”
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
A ruler must avoid harsh, excessive exactions and morally suspect gain; otherwise society will despise him, just as communities reject a fallen patron of sacrifice or a lust-driven man. Legitimate revenue must be collected with restraint and dharmic propriety.
Nārada questions the ruler about public opinion and moral standing, warning that if he is known for severe or excessive taking (as an ‘ugra-pratigrahītā’), the people may treat him with contempt, using vivid social analogies to stress the danger.