Shloka 43
स्वाध्याय-योगोपदेशः तथा केशिध्वज-खाण्डिक्य-उपाख्यानम्
Yoga through Study and Restraint; The Keśidhvaja–Khāṇḍikya Narrative Frame
भूयः स मन्त्रिभिः सार्धं मन्त्रयाम् आस पार्थिवः गुरुनिष्कृतिकामो ऽत्र किम् अयं प्रार्थ्यताम् इति
bhūyaḥ sa mantribhiḥ sārdhaṃ mantrayām āsa pārthivaḥ guruniṣkṛtikāmo 'tra kim ayaṃ prārthyatām iti
Then the king again deliberated with his ministers: “Wishing to be freed from the burden of my offence against the guru, what should we ask of him here, so that expiation may be fulfilled?”
Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)
Speaker: Parasara
Teaching: Ethical
Quality: authoritative
Concept: When burdened by wrongdoing—especially toward a guru—one should seek deliberate counsel and pursue proper expiation rather than impulsive action.
Vedantic Theme: Dharma
Application: If you have harmed someone who guided you, take responsibility: consult wise advisors, make restitution, and choose a remedy that repairs trust.
Vishishtadvaita: Moral accountability is integral to a life ordered toward the Lord; expiation and restitution preserve harmony in the Lord’s embodied world (jagat) without denying relational duties.
FAQs
This verse highlights that wrongdoing toward a guru is treated as a serious dharmic rupture, requiring deliberate counsel and a concrete act of restitution or expiation to restore moral order.
Parāśara depicts the king consulting ministers repeatedly, showing that repentance is not merely emotional—it is guided by thoughtful inquiry into what action should be requested or performed to rectify the fault.
Even without naming Vishnu directly, the narrative assumes a Vishnu-governed dharmic cosmos: kingship, counsel, and expiation function within the supreme order that Vaishnava tradition attributes to Vishnu as the upholder of dharma.