Shloka 23
Akṣa-hṛdaya-dāna and Phalāśruti of the Nalopākhyāna (अक्षहृदयदानम् / नलोपाख्यान-फलश्रुतिः)
नाहं परकृतं दोषं त्वय्याधास्थे कथंचन । यथासुखं वै जीव त्वं प्राणानवसृजामि ते,“दूसरे (कलियुग)-के किये हुए अपराधको मैं किसी तरह तेरे मत्थे नहीं मदूँगा। तू सुखपूर्वक जीवित रह। मैं तेरे प्राण तुझे वापस देता हूँ
bṛhadaśva uvāca | nāhaṃ parakṛtaṃ doṣaṃ tvayy ādhāsthe kathaṃcana | yathāsukhaṃ vai jīva tvaṃ prāṇān avasṛjāmi te |
Bṛhadaśva said: “I will not, in any way, lay upon you the blame for a fault committed by another. Live on in comfort; I release your life-breaths back to you.”
बृहदश्चव उवाच
Educational Q&A
One should not transfer or impose the guilt of another’s wrongdoing onto an innocent person; ethical judgment requires accurate attribution of responsibility, tempered with compassion and the protection of life.
Bṛhadaśva addresses someone whose life is in his power, declares that he will not hold them responsible for another’s offense, and grants them life—symbolically ‘returning’ their prāṇas and allowing them to live in peace.