Shloka 8
Adhyāya 122 — Śruta-vṛtta-yukta Brāhmaṇa and the Ethics of Dāna
Maitreya–Vyāsa Saṃvāda
स तथेति प्रतिश्रुत्य कीटो वर्त्मन्यतिष्ठत । शकटो व्रजंश्व॒ सुमहानागतश्न यद्च्छया
sa tatheti pratiśrutya kīṭo vartmany atiṣṭhata | śakaṭo vrajaṃś ca sumahān āgataś ca yadṛcchayā ||
虫は「そのとおり」と承って、道の上のその場所にじっと留まった。するとまさにその時、まったくの偶然によって、巨大な車がその道を転がり来た—自ら選んだ道筋に固執して動かぬことの帰結が、ここに整えられたのである。
व्यास उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even a small being’s choice to stand firm (or to remain in harm’s way) meets the force of larger circumstances; ethical reflection lies in discerning when steadfastness is virtue and when it becomes heedless obstinacy, especially as chance events can suddenly magnify consequences.
Vyāsa narrates that an insect, after agreeing to a proposal, stays on the roadway; at that very moment a huge cart happens to arrive, creating imminent danger and driving the next turn of the story.