Shloka 886

Aṣṭāvakra–Strī-saṃvāda: Dhṛti, hospitality, and a dispute on autonomy

Devanagari script

दूषितं धर्मशास्त्रजै: परदाराभिमर्शनम्‌ | अष्टावक्र बोले--भद्रे! मैं परायी स्त्रीके साथ किसी तरह संसर्ग नहीं कर सकता; क्योंकि धर्मशास्त्रके विद्वानोंने परस्त्रीसमागमकी निन्‍्दा की है

Transliteration

dūṣitaṃ dharmaśāstrajaiḥ paradārābhimarśanam |

Translation

アシュターヴァクラは言った。「他人の妻と交わることは、ダルマ・シャーストラに通じた学匠たちが非難するところである。ゆえに私は、いかなる形であれ、そのような交合に及ぶことはできぬ。」

Word by Word

• दूषितम्: condemned/tainted
• दूषितम्: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दूषित (√दूष्)
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• धर्मशास्त्रजैः: by those born from/grounded in Dharma-śāstra (Dharma-śāstra experts)
• धर्मशास्त्रजैः: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: धर्मशास्त्रज
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Plural

• परदाराभिमर्शनम्: touching/approaching another's wife
• परदाराभिमर्शनम्: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: परदाराभिमर्शन
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

अष्टावक्र उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Aṣṭāvakra

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Sexual relations with another man’s wife are ethically blameworthy and explicitly censured by Dharmaśāstra authorities; therefore one should practice restraint and avoid such conduct.

What is happening in the narrative?

Aṣṭāvakra states his refusal to engage with a ‘paradāra’ (another’s wife), grounding his stance in the normative judgment of Dharmaśāstra experts who condemn such intimacy.