Markandeya Purana — Adhyaya 69, Shloka 62
Adhyaya 69 — The King’s Neglect of His Wife and the Restoration of Dharma
मार्कण्डेय उवाच । विलक्ष्यः स महीपाल इत्युक्तस्तेन धीमता । तथेत्युक्त्वा च पप्रच्छ हृतां पत्नीं द्विजन्मनः ॥
mārkaṇḍeya uvāca vilakṣyaḥ sa mahīpāla ity uktas tena dhīmatā / tathety uktvā ca papraccha hṛtāṃ patnīṃ dvijanmanaḥ
Mārkaṇḍeya said: Thus addressed by that wise man, the king was abashed. Saying, “So be it,” he then asked about the Brahmin’s wife who had been carried off.
FAQs
Shame (vilakṣyatā) here signals moral awakening: correct counsel produces humility, which then leads to right action—seeking to repair harm done to the vulnerable.
Manvantara: an illustrative episode within a Manu-era used to teach dharma through narrative consequence.
The king’s ‘abashment’ represents the turning-point where ego yields to dharma; only then can truth (right inquiry) arise.