Shloka 10
Adhyāya 76: Kuṇḍina-praveśaḥ, Bhīmena satkāraḥ, Ṛtuparṇa-kṣamā, Aśvahṛdaya-pratyarpanam
Nala’s Reception and Reconciliation
पूर्व दृष्टस्त्वया कश्चिद् धर्मज्ञो नाम बाहुक । सुप्तामुत्सृज्य विपिने गतो यः पुरुष: स्त्रियम्,“बाहुक! तुमने पहले किसी ऐसे धर्मज्ञ पुरुषको देखा है, जो अपनी सोयी हुई पत्नीको वनमें अकेली छोड़कर चले गये थे
pūrva dṛṣṭas tvayā kaścid dharmajño nāma bāhuka | suptām utsṛjya vipine gato yaḥ puruṣaḥ striyam ||
Bṛhadaśva said: “O Bāhuka, have you ever before seen any man—one famed as a knower of dharma—who, abandoning his wife while she slept, went away leaving her alone in the forest?”
बृहदश्चव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames an ethical challenge: a person reputed to know dharma is questioned for an act that appears contrary to marital responsibility and basic protection—leaving a sleeping wife alone in a dangerous forest. It invites reflection on the gap between reputation and conduct, and on duties owed to dependents.
Bṛhadaśva addresses Bāhuka with a pointed question, asking whether he has ever seen a ‘dharma-knowing’ man who nevertheless abandoned his sleeping wife in the forest. The question functions as a setup for moral evaluation and for drawing out the circumstances behind such an act.