Shloka 6
Jaradkāru Encounters the Pitṛs
Jaratkāru-Pitṛdarśana
न चापश्यन्मृगं राजा चरंस्तस्मिन् महावने । पितरं ते स दृष्टवैव पप्रच्छानभि भाषिणम्,कृशने कहा--अभिमम्युपुत्र राजा परीक्षित् अकेले शिकार खेलने आये थे। उन्होंने एक शीघ्रगामी हिंसक मृग (पशु)-को बाणसे बींध डाला; किंतु उस विशाल वनमें विचरते हुए राजाको वह मृग कहीं दिखायी न दिया। फिर उन्होंने तुम्हारे मौनी पिताको देखकर उसके विषयमें पूछा
na cāpaśyan mṛgaṃ rājā caraṃs tasmin mahāvane | pitaraṃ te sa dṛṣṭvaiva papracchānabhibhāṣiṇam ||
Y mientras el rey vagaba por aquel vasto bosque, no vio al ciervo. Entonces, al advertir a tu padre —que guardaba silencio— lo interrogó. El episodio perfila una tensión moral: la prisa y la frustración del soberano en la caza se enfrentan a la disciplina del voto de silencio del sabio, preparando el terreno para una falta nacida de la impaciencia.
कृश उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how impatience and frustration can push even a ruler toward adharma. It contrasts royal urgency with ascetic restraint (silence), implying that self-control and respectful conduct toward sages are essential, especially when one holds power.
The king, unable to find the deer he was pursuing in the vast forest, encounters a silent sage (the listener’s father) and questions him about the deer. The sage’s silence becomes the immediate trigger for the king’s escalating irritation in the subsequent events.