Shloka 52
Śaraṇāgata-Atithi-Dharma in the Kapota Narrative (कपोत-आख्यानम्—शरणागतधर्मः)
अवसीद-न्ति मे प्राणा: श्रुतिर्मे नश्यति क्षुधा । दुर्बलो नष्ट्ंज्ञश्न भक्ष्याभक्ष्यविवर्जित:
avasīdanti me prāṇāḥ śrutir me naśyati kṣudhā | durbalo naṣṭasaṃjñaś ca bhakṣyābhakṣyavivarjitaḥ ||
मेरे प्राण शिथिल हो रहे हैं; भूख से मेरी श्रवणशक्ति नष्ट होती जा रही है। मैं दुर्बल हो गया हूँ, मेरी चेतना लुप्त-सी हो रही है; इसलिए अब मुझमें भक्ष्य-अभक्ष्य का विचार नहीं रहा।
घपच उवाच
Educational Q&A
Severe bodily affliction—especially hunger—can erode mental clarity and ethical discrimination; therefore dharma requires not only ideals but also the preservation of conditions (strength, stability, self-control) that make right judgment possible.
The speaker describes an extreme state of hunger and weakness: life-force is ebbing, hearing is failing, consciousness is fading, and the usual moral/ritual distinction between permissible and impermissible food has collapsed.