Shloka 4
Ajagara-vrata (The ‘Python’ Discipline): Prahrāda Questions a Wandering Sage
राक्षस उवाच क्व ते निवास: कल्याण किंगोत्रा ब्राह्मणी च ते । तच्त्वं ब्रूहि न भी: कार्या विश्वसस्व यथासुखम्,राक्षसराज बोले--भद्र! तुम्हारा निवास कहाँ है? तुम्हारी पत्नी किस गोत्रकी कन्या है? यह सब ठीक-ठीक बताओ। भय न करो। मुझपर विश्वास करो और सुखसे रहो
rākṣasa uvāca: kva te nivāsaḥ, kalyāṇa, kiṃ gotrā brāhmaṇī ca te? tat tvaṃ brūhi; na bhīḥ kāryā; viśvasasva yathāsukham.
Sang Raksasa berkata: “Wahai yang berbudi, di manakah tempat tinggalmu? Dan dari gotra apakah istrimu, seorang perempuan Brahmana? Katakan semuanya dengan tepat. Jangan takut—percayalah kepadaku dan tinggallah dengan tenteram.”
राक्षस उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even in tense encounters, speech can be framed through reassurance and restraint: the speaker urges the other not to fear and to remain at ease, highlighting the ethical power of calming, trust-inviting words (whether sincere or strategic).
A Rākṣasa questions a man about his residence and about the gotra of his Brāhmaṇa wife, then attempts to allay fear by asking him to trust and stay comfortably—setting up a situation where identity and vulnerability become central to the exchange.