Shloka 79
Duḥṣantasya Vana-praveśaḥ
King Duḥṣanta’s Entry into the Forest Hunt
वृणीष्व च वरं भीरु यं त्वमिच्छसि भामिनि | वृथा हि न प्रसादो मे भूतपूर्व: शुचिस्मिते
vaiśampāyana uvāca |
vṛṇīṣva ca varaṃ bhīru yaṃ tvam icchasi bhāmini |
vṛthā hi na prasādo me bhūtapūrvaḥ śucismite ||
“Pilihlah sebuah anugerah, wahai yang pemalu—apa pun yang kau kehendaki, wahai wanita bersemangat. Sebab rahmatku tak pernah, pada masa lampau, menjadi sia-sia, wahai yang senyumnya suci.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
A boon (vara) is not a casual gift but a morally weighty commitment: the giver’s grace is presented as unfailing, so the recipient must exercise discernment and responsibility in choosing what to ask.
The speaker reports a moment where a powerful figure invites a woman to request any boon she desires, assuring her that his favor has never been ineffective—setting up the consequential choice that follows in the story.