Shloka 256
Dāna-Śreṣṭhatā: Abhaya, Anugraha, and the Ethics of Honoring the Worthy (दानश्रेष्ठता: अभय-अनुग्रह-विप्रपूजा)
प्रीत्यर्थ तव चैतन्मे स्वर्गसंदर्शनं कृतम् । फिर जब मैं तुम्हारा धन लुटाने लगा
prītyarthaṁ tava caitanmē svargasaṁdarśanaṁ kṛtam |
Cyavana dit : «Cette vision du ciel ne t’a été montrée que pour te plaire. Même lorsque je commençai à te dépouiller de tes richesses, tu ne tombas pas sous l’emprise de la colère. Voyant tout cela, je fus grandement réjoui de toi. C’est pourquoi, ô roi, seigneur parmi les hommes, je t’ai fait—avec ton épouse—contempler le ciel ici, dans cette forêt, avec un seul dessein : te satisfaire. Sache bien que le but de tous ces actes n’était que de te réjouir.»
च्यवन उवाच
Educational Q&A
True virtue is shown by self-mastery: even when provoked by loss or insult, one should not be ruled by anger. Such forbearance and steadiness in dharma become the basis for divine favor and higher reward.
Sage Chyavana explains that he deliberately arranged a situation that could provoke the king—such as the taking away of wealth—to test his temperament. Because the king remained unangered, Chyavana was pleased and therefore granted him (with his wife) a vision of heaven in the forest, clarifying that the entire sequence was meant to satisfy and honor him.