Shloka 32
अध्याय २८१ — दानधर्मः, न्यायागतधनम्, ऋणत्रय-परिशोधनं च
Dāna ethics, lawful wealth, and settling obligations
अग्निरुवाच मम मोक्षस्य कोडच्तो वै ब्रह्मन् ध्यायस्व वै प्रभो । एतदिच्छामि विज्ञातुं तत्तवतो लोकपूजित
agnir uvāca mama mokṣasya ko ’ntaḥ vai brahman dhyāyasva vai prabho | etad icchāmi vijñātuṁ tattvato lokapūjita ||
अग्नि ने कहा— हे ब्रह्मन्, हे प्रभो! मेरे मोक्ष की सच्ची सीमा—अन्तिम अवधि—पर आप विचार करके निश्चित करें। लोकपूजित पितामह! मैं ठीक-ठीक जानना चाहता हूँ कि इस ब्रह्महत्या के कलंक से मुझे कब और कैसे मुक्ति मिलेगी।
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even a powerful cosmic force like Agni submits to dharma: moral taint (here, brahmahatyā) is not erased by status or power but requires truthful discernment of its term and the proper means of purification and release.
Agni addresses a revered Brahmin/lordly authority and asks him to contemplate and state the exact endpoint of Agni’s liberation—i.e., when Agni will be freed from the consequence of brahma-slaughter—seeking a precise, authoritative determination.