Shloka 22
Adhyāya 76: Kuṇḍina-praveśaḥ, Bhīmena satkāraḥ, Ṛtuparṇa-kṣamā, Aśvahṛdaya-pratyarpanam
Nala’s Reception and Reconciliation
कथं नु नारी भर्तारमनुरक्तमनुव्रतम् । उत्सृज्य वरयेदन्यं यथा त्वं भीरु कहिचित्,'भीरु! कोई भी स्त्री कभी अपने अनुरक्त एवं भक्त पतिको त्यागकर दूसरे पुरुषका वरण कैसे कर सकती है? जैसा कि तुम करने जा रही हो
kathaṁ nu nārī bhartāram anuraktam anuvratam | utsṛjya varayed anyaṁ yathā tvaṁ bhīru karhi cit ||
Bṛhadaśva said: “How could any woman ever abandon a husband who is devoted to her and faithful in conduct, and then choose another man? Yet you, timid one, are about to do just that.”
बृहदश्चव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse asserts a dharma-based ideal of marital loyalty: abandoning a devoted, faithful husband to choose another man is portrayed as ethically improper and socially unthinkable, and the speaker uses a rhetorical question to censure such intent.
Bṛhadaśva addresses a woman directly, calling her “bhīru” (timid one), and rebukes her for seeming ready to forsake a husband who is affectionate and steadfast, questioning how such a choice could ever be made.