Shloka 3.19.22

खरस्य क्रोधः — शूर्पणखावृत्तान्तकथनम् (Khara’s Wrath and Śūrpaṇakhā’s Report)

Devanagari script

मानुषौ शस्त्रसम्पन्नौ चीरकृष्णाजिनाम्बरौ।प्रविष्टौ दण्डकारण्यं घोरं प्रमदया सह।।।।

Transliteration

kaḥ kālapāśaṃ samāsajya kaṇṭhe mohān na budhyate | yas tvām adya samāsādya pītavān viṣam uttamam ||

Translation

Who, out of delusion, would fasten the noose of Death upon his own throat and still not understand? Whoever has attacked you today has, as it were, drunk the most lethal poison.

Context

Two human beings equipped with weapons, clad in bark robes and deer-skin have entered the dreadful Dandaka forest along with a woman of bewitching beauty.

Characters & Entities

• Khara
• Śūrpaṇakhā
• Kāla (Death, personified)

FAQs

What is the core ethical principle (Dharma) in this verse?

Actions opposed to dharma—especially violent aggression—bind the doer to inevitable consequences; the verse stresses moral causality as a truth (satya) of conduct.

What is the narrative situation?

Khara is enraged by Śūrpaṇakhā’s condition and frames the attacker’s act as self-destructive, like embracing death.

Which character virtue is emphasized?

Awareness of consequence: understanding that wrongdoing and provocation return upon the perpetrator.