Shloka 35
आदि पर्व — अध्याय ८३: ययाति-इन्द्र-संवादः तथा अष्टक-प्रश्नः
Yayāti–Indra Dialogue and Aṣṭaka’s Inquiry
(यद् यद् याचति मां कश्चित् तत् तद् देयमिति व्रतम् । त्वया च सापि दत्ता मे नान््यं नाथमिहेच्छति ।। मत्वैतन्मे धर्म इति कृतं ब्रह्मन् क्षमस्व माम् ।) इत्येतानि समीक्ष्याहं कारणानि भृगूद्वह । अधर्मभयसंविग्न: शर्मिष्ठामुपजग्मिवान्,ब्रह्मन! मेरा यह व्रत है कि मुझसे कोई जो भी वस्तु माँगे, उसे वह अवश्य दे दूँगा। आपके ही द्वारा मुझे सौंपी हुई शर्मिष्ठा इस जगत्में दूसरे किसी पुरुषको अपना पति बनाना नहीं चाहती थी। अत: उसकी इच्छा पूर्ण करना धर्म समझकर मैंने वैसा किया है। आप इसके लिये मुझे क्षमा करें। भृगुश्रेष्ठ) इन्हीं सब कारणोंका विचार करके अधर्मके भयसे उद्विग्न हो मैं शर्मिष्ठाके पास गया था
śukra uvāca — yad yad yācati māṃ kaścit tat tad deyam iti vratam | tvayā ca sāpi dattā me nānyaṃ nātham ihecchati || matvaitanm e dharma iti kṛtaṃ brahman kṣamasva mām | ity etāni samīkṣyāhaṃ kāraṇāni bhṛgūdvaha | adharmabhayasaṃvignaḥ śarmiṣṭhām upajagmivān ||
Śukra said: “My vow is this: whatever anyone asks of me, that very thing must be given. And the same Śarmiṣṭhā—entrusted to me by you—did not wish to accept any other man in this world as her husband. Therefore, taking it to be my duty to fulfill her wish, I acted accordingly. O Brahmin, forgive me.” Having weighed these reasons, O best of the Bhṛgus, and shaken by fear of falling into unrighteousness, I went to Śarmiṣṭhā.
शुक्र उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage highlights a dharma-conflict: a rigid vow of generosity (“give whatever is asked”) collides with the duty of protecting someone entrusted to one’s care. Śukra frames his action as an attempt to honor both the vow and Śarmiṣṭhā’s expressed choice, while still seeking forgiveness because the situation risks adharma.
Śukra explains to a Brahmin (addressed as “best of the Bhṛgus”) why he went to Śarmiṣṭhā and acted to fulfill her wish regarding a husband. He justifies himself by citing his vow to grant requests and his fear of committing adharma, then asks pardon for the consequences of his decision.