Shloka 1.62.7
शुनश्शेफरक्षा–विश्वामित्रशापः (Sunassepha’s Rescue and Visvamitra’s Curse)
त्वं मे नाथो ह्यनाथस्य भव भव्येन चेतसा।पितेव पुत्रं धर्मात्मं स्त्रातुमर्हसि किल्बिषात्।।।।
tvaṃ me nātho hy anāthasya bhava bhavyena cetasā | pitevā putraṃ dharmātmāṃ strātum arhasi kilbiṣāt ||
You are my protector, for I am without protection. Be my lord with an auspicious, compassionate mind; O righteous one, like a father saving his son, you ought to rescue me from sin and peril.
O Virtuous one! with a kind heart protect this orphan. Like a father who protects his son, save me from this peril".
The dharma highlighted is protection of the helpless (anātha) and honoring refuge-seeking (śaraṇāgati). A righteous person is expected to act like a father—using compassion and moral responsibility to save another from wrongdoing and danger.
Śunaḥśepha, facing a sacrificial threat and moral peril, appeals to Viśvāmitra for refuge and rescue, framing the request as a duty of a dharmic protector.
Viśvāmitra’s expected virtue is karuṇā (compassion) guided by dharma—protecting one who has surrendered and preventing him from falling into ‘kilbiṣa’ (sin/culpability).