Shloka 95
Duḥṣantasya Vana-praveśaḥ
King Duḥṣanta’s Entry into the Forest Hunt
तन्मे सहस्रममितं कस्मान्नेहाजयत् तपः । गरीयान् ब्राह्णवध: सर्वभूतवधाद् यत:
tan me sahasram amitaṁ kasmān nehājayat tapaḥ | garīyān brāhmaṇa-vadhaḥ sarva-bhūta-vadhād yataḥ ||
我は量り知れぬほど、千倍にも及ぶ苦行を修してきた。されどなぜ、その苦行はこの我が小さき罪を征し滅ぼさぬのか。婆羅門を殺す罪は、他のあらゆる生きものを殺すよりも、なお重く—なお痛ましい—からである。
दाश उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores a key dharmic hierarchy of wrongdoing: brahminicide (brāhmaṇa-vadha/brahmahatyā) is treated as an exceptionally grave sin, not easily neutralized even by vast austerities. It highlights that moral weight is not measured only by quantity of harm but also by the protected status and symbolic role of the brāhmaṇa within the dharma-order.
Dāśa speaks in remorse and self-questioning. He claims to have undertaken immense tapas, yet finds that his guilt remains unresolved, and he explains why: the act he is burdened by—killing a brāhmaṇa—is considered heavier than killing other beings, making expiation difficult.