Shloka 8
कौशिकस्य क्रोधविनिवृत्तिः — Kauśika’s Anger Checked by Householder Dharma
अथ ब्राह्मणो वृषदर्भसकाशं गत्वा अश्वसहसत्रमयाचत् । स राजा त॑ कशेनाताडयत्,“तब ब्राह्मण देवताने वृषदर्भके पास जाकर एक हजार घोड़े माँगे। यह सुनकर राजा उन्हें कोड़ेसे पीटने लगे”
atha brāhmaṇo vṛṣadarbhasakāśaṃ gatvā aśvasahastraṃ ayācat | sa rājā taṃ kaśenātāḍayat |
Vaiśampāyana said: Then a brāhmaṇa went to King Vṛṣadarbha and asked for a thousand horses. Hearing this, the king struck the brāhmaṇa with a whip.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
A king’s power must be governed by dharma: a supplicant—especially a brāhmaṇa—should be met with restraint, respect, and appropriate giving or refusal, not humiliation or violence.
A brāhmaṇa approaches King Vṛṣadarbha and requests a thousand horses; the king responds harshly by beating him with a whip, setting up a moral contrast about proper conduct toward petitioners.