Srimad Bhagavatam — Navama Skandha, Shloka 5
Mahārāja Sagara, Kapila Muni, and the Deliverance of the Sixty Thousand Sons
यस्तालजङ्घान् यवनाञ्छकान् हैहयबर्बरान् । नावधीद् गुरुवाक्येन चक्रे विकृतवेषिण: ॥ ५ ॥ मुण्डाञ्छ्मश्रुधरान् कांश्चिन्मुक्तकेशार्धमुण्डितान् । अनन्तर्वासस: कांश्चिदबहिर्वाससोऽपरान् ॥ ६ ॥
yas tālajaṅghān yavanāñ chakān haihaya-barbarān nāvadhīd guru-vākyena cakre vikṛta-veṣiṇaḥ
Atas perintah guru Aurva, Maharaja Sagara tidak membunuh bangsa-bangsa kasar seperti Tālajaṅgha, Yavana, Śaka, Haihaya, dan Barbara. Sebaliknya, ia menetapkan rupa yang berbeda-beda: ada yang digunduli namun dibiarkan berkumis, ada yang berambut terurai, ada yang setengah gundul, ada yang tanpa pakaian dalam, dan ada yang tanpa pakaian luar. Dengan demikian mereka dibedakan lewat busana, tetapi tidak dibinasakan.
FAQs
This verse highlights that even in matters of punishment, one should follow the guru’s instruction; the king refrained from killing and instead imposed a corrective, non-lethal consequence.
Śukadeva Gosvāmī narrates this history to King Parīkṣit while describing events connected with the Sagara dynasty and related lineages.
Discipline guided by higher wisdom should be restrained and purposeful—avoid unnecessary harm, and apply consequences that reform rather than merely retaliate.