Shloka 35
Jaratkāru’s Marital Compact and Departure (जरत्कारु–जरत्कारुणी संवादः)
कृमिकं प्राहसत् तूर्ण मुमूर्षुर्नष्टचेतन: । प्रहसन्नेव भोगेन तक्षकेण त्ववेष्ट्यत
kṛmikaṃ prāhasat tūrṇaṃ mumūrṣur naṣṭacetanaḥ | prahasann eva bhogena takṣakeṇa tv aveṣṭyata ||
王は死が迫って心が曇り、あの小さな虫を見て高らかに笑い出した。なお笑い続けるそのさなか、タクシャカは締め縄のごとく身を巻きつけた。たちまち王を固く絞め、蛇王タクシャカは轟く咆哮を放って、パリークシトに噛みついた。
तक्षक उवाच
Educational Q&A
When arrogance and mockery replace discernment—especially after a warning—one becomes vulnerable to inevitable consequence. The verse highlights the moral force of karma and the unstoppable movement of kāla (time), which brings the fruit of one’s actions to completion.
Parīkṣit, nearing death and mentally clouded, laughs at a ‘worm’ (the contemptible object placed upon him). At that very moment Takṣaka emerges and coils around the king, then bites him, fulfilling the destined outcome of the curse.