Markandeya Purana — Adhyaya 70, Shloka 19
Adhyaya 70 — The King Confronts the Rakshasa and Restores the Brahmin’s Wife
सन्ति नः प्रमदा भूप ! रूपेणाप्सरसां समाः ।
राक्षस्यस्तासु तिष्ठत्सु मानुषीषु रतिः कथम् ॥
santi naḥ pramadā bhūpa rūpeṇāpsarasāṃ samāḥ | rākṣasyas tāsu tiṣṭhatsu mānuṣīṣu ratiḥ katham ||
हे राजन्, हमारे यहाँ ऐसी राक्षसियाँ हैं जिनका सौन्दर्य अप्सराओं के समान है। जब ऐसी राक्षसी स्त्रियाँ उपलब्ध हों, तो मनुष्य-स्त्रियों में कामना कैसे हो सकती है?
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FAQs
The rākṣasa uses plausibility to deny wrongdoing. The ethical point is to scrutinize persuasive speech: dharma is not established by clever argument but by conduct and consequences.
Narrative-ethical material (upākhyāna), not directly tied to sarga/pratisarga/manvantara/vaṃśa.
Apsaras-like beauty stands for refined temptation; the claim ‘no desire for humans’ masks a deeper motive—removing the wife to disable yajña—showing how kāma can be a cover for power-strategy.