Shloka 706
Aṣṭāvakra–Strī-saṃvāda: Dhṛti, hospitality, and a dispute on autonomy
कौतूहलं समाविष्ट: प्रविवेश गृहं द्विज: । तत्पश्चात् वे सातों तरुणी स्त्रियाँ बोलीं--/भगवन्! आप घरके भीतर प्रवेश करें।' ऋषिके मनमें उन सुन्दरियोंके तथा उस घरके विषयमें कौतूहल पैदा हो गया था; अतः उन्होंने उस घरमें प्रवेश किया
kautūhalaṃ samāviṣṭaḥ praviveśa gṛhaṃ dvijaḥ | tatpaścāt tāḥ sapta taruṇyaḥ striya ūcuḥ— “bhagavan! bhavān gṛhasya bhitaraṃ praviśatu” | ṛṣeḥ manasi tāsu sundarīṣu tasmin gṛhe ca viṣaye kautūhalaṃ jātaṃ; ataḥ sa tasmin gṛhe praviṣṭaḥ |
好奇心に包まれたその婆羅門は家の中へ入った。すると七人の若い女たちが言った。「尊き御方よ、どうぞ内へお入りください。」その仙人の心には、あの美しい女たちとその家とについての不思議が湧き起こっていた。ゆえに彼は中へ踏み入った。
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse sets up an ethical test: even a learned ascetic can be drawn by curiosity, so one should guard the senses and mind, weighing consequences before entering potentially compromising situations.
A brahmin/sage, intrigued by a house and seven young women, is invited inside; his curiosity leads him to enter, preparing the ground for a moral or dharmic episode that follows.