Shloka 8
Karma, Preta-gati, and the Continuity of Phala
Mārkaṇḍeya’s Instruction
चिरेणाद्य मया55हार: प्राप्तोडयमनुजस्तव । नाहमेनं विमोक्ष्यामि न चान्यमभिकाड्क्षये,दीर्घकालतक उपवास करनेके बाद आज यह तुम्हारा छोटा भाई मुझे आहाररूपमें प्राप्त हुआ है, अतः न तो मैं इसे छोडूँगा और न इसके बदलेमें दूसरा आहार ही लेना चाहता हूँ
cireṇādya mayāhāraḥ prāpto ’yam anujas tava | nāham enaṃ vimokṣyāmi na cānyam abhikāṅkṣaye ||
The serpent said: “After a long time of fasting, today this younger brother of yours has come into my hands as food. Therefore I will not release him, nor do I desire any other meal in exchange.”
सर्प उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames an ethical conflict: raw appetite and self-interest are asserted as justification for harm, setting up a dharma-test where the human side must respond with discernment, restraint, and a higher moral claim than mere survival or desire.
A serpent has seized the listener’s younger brother and declares that, after a long fast, it has finally obtained prey. It refuses to release him and rejects any substitute, escalating the crisis and forcing a moral and strategic response.