Shloka 14
Vidura’s Message to Dhṛtarāṣṭra: Authorization for Dāna and Public Welfare (विदुरवाक्यम्—दानानुज्ञा)
शशलोमा च राजा55सीदू राजन् परमधार्मिक: । सम्यगस्मिन् वने तप्त्वा ततो दिवमवाप्तवान्,राजन! परम धर्मात्मा राजा शशलोमाने भी इसी वनमें उत्तम तपस्या करके स्वर्ग प्राप्त किया था
śaśalomā ca rājā āsīd rājan paramadhārmikaḥ | samyag asmin vane taptvā tato divam avāptavān, rājan |
Nārada dit : «Ô roi, il fut jadis un souverain d’une droiture suprême nommé Śaśalomā. Ayant accompli comme il se doit une austère pénitence dans cette même forêt, il atteignit ensuite le ciel, ô roi.»
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
Properly undertaken tapas (austere discipline) grounded in dharma can elevate even a ruler to the highest posthumous goal described here—attainment of heaven—showing that ethical conduct and sincere spiritual effort are decisive, not mere status.
Nārada cites an exemplary precedent: he tells the addressed king that a former ruler, Śaśalomā, practiced austerities in the same forest and, by doing so rightly, attained heaven—strengthening the authority of the forest-ascetic ideal within the episode.