Shloka 29
Aṣṭāvakra–Kahoda Upākhyāna: Śvetaketu’s Āśrama, Sarasvatī, and the Origin of Aṣṭāvakra
श्येन उवाच इन्द्रोडहमस्मि धर्मज्ञ कपोतो हव्यवाडयम् । जिज्ञासमानोौ धर्म त्वां यज्ञवाटमुपागतौ
śyena uvāca indro ’ham asmi dharmajña kapoto havyavāḍ ayam | jijñāsamānau dharma tvāṁ yajñavāṭam upāgatau ||
श्येन बोला—हे धर्मज्ञ! मैं इन्द्र हूँ और यह कबूतर हव्यवाहन अग्नि है। हम दोनों तुम्हारे धर्म की परीक्षा करने हेतु तुम्हारे यज्ञवाट में आए हैं।
श्येन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Dharma is not merely declared but demonstrated under pressure; the gods themselves may test a person’s righteousness, especially where compassion, protection, and competing duties collide.
The hawk reveals that he is Indra and that the pigeon is Agni; together they have come to the sacrificial enclosure to examine the addressee’s adherence to dharma by placing him in a moral trial.