व्याघ्रस्य कामरूपस्य दातव्यं जीवितं मया । तेनाहं शपथैर्मुक्ता कारणात्तव पुत्रक
vyāghrasya kāmarūpasya dātavyaṃ jīvitaṃ mayā | tenāhaṃ śapathairmuktā kāraṇāttava putraka
Kepada seekor harimau yang dapat berubah wujud, aku harus menyerahkan nyawaku. Karena itulah, anakku sayang, aku terbebas dari ikatan sumpahku.
Mother (unnamed)
Listener: Vatsa
Scene: Kapilā reveals the stark obligation: she must give her life to a shape-shifting tiger; the atmosphere tightens, with the forest looming as a moral arena.
Truthfulness and vow-keeping are treated as binding dharma, even at the cost of one’s own life.
The broader setting is Arbudakhaṇḍa (Arbuda/Mount Abu sacred region); this specific verse emphasizes narrative dharma rather than a named tīrtha.
None; the verse centers on the moral force of śapatha (solemn oath).