Shloka 23
Sāvitrī’s Report and Nārada’s Prognosis (सावित्र्याख्यान—सत्यवान्-गुणवर्णनं तथा अल्पायुषः पूर्वसूचना)
सत्यप्रतिज्ञ यन्मे त्वं काममेक॑ निसृष्टवान् । उपाकुरुष्व तद् राजंस्तस्मान्मुच्यस्व संकटात्
satyapratijña yan me tvaṃ kāmam ekaṃ nisṛṣṭavān | upākurusva tad rājaṃs tasmān mucyasva saṅkaṭāt | dhanaṃ dadāni kasyādya hviyatāṃ kasya vā punaḥ | brāhmaṇasvād ihānyatra yat kiṃcid vittam asti me ||
Mārkaṇḍeya dit : «Puisque toi, ô roi fidèle à ta promesse, m’as accordé un seul don selon mon choix, accomplis-le, ô roi, et délivre-toi de ce péril. Qui dois-je faire appeler aujourd’hui pour recevoir des richesses ? Ou qui, encore, dois-je convoquer ? Tout ce que je possède — ici ou ailleurs —, hormis ce qui appartient aux brahmanes, est à ta disposition.»
मार्कण्डेय उवाच
Educational Q&A
A ruler’s power over wealth and punishment must be exercised within dharma: truthfulness to one’s pledge is praised, and even when offering total control over one’s possessions, an ethical boundary is stated—Brahmin property is not to be violated.
Mārkaṇḍeya addresses a king who has promised to grant a boon. He urges the king to fulfill the promised request so the king may be released from a looming danger, while the king’s authority over giving wealth or summoning persons is framed with the explicit exception of what belongs to Brahmins.