Shloka 20
धर्मव्याधोपदेशः
Dharma-vyādha’s Instruction on Śiṣṭācāra and Dharma
श्येन उवाच उरोर्दक्षिणादुत्कृत्य स्वपिशितं तावद् राजन् यावन्मांसं कपोतेन समम् | तथा तस्मात् साधु त्रात: कपोतः प्रशंसेयुश्न शिबय: कृतं च प्रियं स्थान्ममेति,बाज बोला--राजन्! अपनी दायीं जाँघसे उतना ही मांस काटकर दो, जितना इस कबूतरके बराबर हो सके। ऐसा करनेसे कबूतरकी भलीभाँति रक्षा हो सकती है। इसीसे शिबिदेशकी प्रजा आपकी भूरि-भूरि प्रशंसा करेगी और मेरा भी प्रिय कार्य सम्पन्न हो जायगा
śyena uvāca: uror dakṣiṇād utkṛtya sva-piśitaṃ tāvad, rājan, yāvan māṃsaṃ kapotena samam | tathā tasmāt sādhu trātaḥ kapotaḥ praśaṃseyuś ca śibayaḥ; kṛtaṃ ca priyaṃ sthān mama iti ||
El halcón dijo: «Oh rey, corta de tu muslo derecho una porción de tu propia carne, sólo la cantidad que iguale en peso a la carne de esta paloma. Así la paloma quedará debidamente protegida. Entonces el pueblo de la tierra de Śibi te colmará de alabanzas por haberla salvado bien, y también se cumplirá el propósito que yo deseo».
श्येन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames dharma as a lived ethical commitment: a ruler’s duty to protect the vulnerable may demand personal cost. The hawk’s demand forces the king to balance compassion (saving the pigeon) with fairness (not denying the hawk its due), culminating in the ideal of self-sacrifice to uphold righteousness.
A pigeon seeks refuge with the king while a hawk claims it as prey. The hawk proposes a condition: the king may save the pigeon only by giving an equal weight of his own flesh from his right thigh. The hawk predicts that such an act will earn the king praise from the people of Śibi and fulfill the hawk’s purpose.