Shloka 21
Indra–Mataṅga Saṃvāda: On the rarity and responsibilities of Brāhmaṇya (इन्द्र-मतङ्ग संवादः)
ब्राह्मण्यां वृषलाज्जातं पितर्वेदयतीव माम् | अमानुषी गर्दभीयं तस्मात् तप्स्ये तपो महत्
brāhmaṇyāṁ vṛṣalāj jātaṁ pitar vedayatīva mām | amānuṣī gardabhīyaṁ tasmāt tapsye tapo mahat, pitājī ||
Mataṅga berkata, “Ayah, keledai betina ini—yang lahir dari rahim non-manusia—terus-menerus menyatakan bahwa aku lahir dari kandungan seorang perempuan Brahmana. Karena itu, kini aku akan menempuh tapa yang agung.”
मतंग उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a moral response to disputed birth and social identity: instead of clinging to claims of status, Matanga turns toward tapas—self-discipline and inner transformation—as the means to establish worth and clarity.
Matanga addresses his father, saying that a non-human she-donkey is asserting he was born from a Brahmin woman’s womb. Troubled by this claim and its implications, he resolves to undertake great austerities.