Shloka 17
दमयन्ती–बाहुकसंवादः
Damayantī’s Dialogue with Bāhuka; Recognition and Disclosure
केशिन्युवाच यो5सावयोध्यां प्रथमं गतो5सौ ब्राह्मणस्तदा । इमानि नारीवाक्यानि कथयान: पुन: पुन:,केशिनीने कहा--पहली बार अयोध्यामें जब वे ब्राह्मणदेवता गये थे, तब उन्होंने स्त्रियोंकी सिखायी हुई निम्नांकित बातें बार-बार कही थीं--
Keśiny uvāca: yo ’sāv Ayodhyāṃ prathamaṃ gato ’sau brāhmaṇas tadā | imāni nārī-vākyāni kathayan punaḥ punaḥ ||
Keśinī said: “When that brāhmaṇa first went to Ayodhyā, he repeatedly recited these very words—sayings taught by women—again and again.”
बाहक उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how counsel and moral instruction can circulate through unexpected channels: a brāhmaṇa repeatedly voices sayings attributed to women, suggesting that ethical insight is not confined to one social category but is transmitted through remembered speech.
Keśinī introduces a reported speech: she recalls that when the brāhmaṇa first went to Ayodhyā, he kept repeating certain women-taught sayings. The verse functions as a lead-in to the specific statements that will be quoted next.