Shloka 46
Aṣṭāvakra’s Visit to Kubera: Hospitality, Temptation, and the Ethics of Restraint (अष्टावक्र-वैश्रवणोपाख्यानम्)
युधिष्ठिर महायोगी वीर्यवानक्षयोडव्यय: । 'सावर्णिक मन्वन्तरके समय जो सृष्टि होगी
Māṇḍavya uvāca—acauras tvaṁ caurasaṅkāyāṁ śūle bhinno hāhaṁ tadā.
Māṇḍavya berkata: “Wahai raja, aku bukan pencuri; namun karena dicurigai mencuri, aku dipalang pada sebuah pasak. Dari tempat itu juga aku memuji Mahādeva, Śiva. Lalu beliau bersabda kepadaku: ‘Wahai brāhmaṇa terbaik, engkau akan dibebaskan dari pasak itu dan engkau akan hidup selama sepuluh krore tahun. Walau pasak ini menembus tubuhmu, engkau takkan merasakan sakit; engkau akan bebas dari derita batin dan penyakit jasmani.’”
माण्डव्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage highlights the ethical danger of punishing on mere suspicion and the endurance of an innocent ascetic who turns suffering into devotion; it also presents divine grace as a response to steadfast praise and purity, granting freedom from pain and affliction.
Māṇḍavya recounts to Yudhiṣṭhira that he was wrongly impaled as a suspected thief; while on the stake he praised Śiva, who then promised his release, extraordinary longevity, and freedom from pain, disease, and mental distress.