Go-apahāra (Cattle Theft), Go-dāna (Cow-Gift), and Suvarṇa-dakṣiṇā (Gold Fee): Karmic Consequence and Purificatory Merit
स वासुदेवेन समुद्धृतश्न पृष्टश्न कार्य निजगाद राजा । नृगस्तदा55त्मानमथो न्यवेदयत् पुरातनं यज्ञसहस्रयाजिनम्
sa vāsudevena samuddhṛtaḥ pṛṣṭaś ca kāryaṁ nijagāda rājā | nṛgas tadātmānam atho nyavedayat purātanaṁ yajñasahasrayājinam ||
ヴァースデーヴァに引き上げられ、事の次第を問われると、王は答えた。そのときヌリガは自らの身分を明かした――幾千もの供犠(ヤジュニャ)を執り行ったことで名高い、古の王であると。こうして彼の苦境は、過去の行いとその報いという重みの中に位置づけられた。
भीष्म उवाच
Merit from grand rituals and public piety does not exempt one from the precise workings of dharma and karma; even a famed sacrificer may face consequences, and truthful self-disclosure becomes the starting point for ethical clarification and instruction.
After being lifted up by Vāsudeva, the afflicted king is questioned about his situation; he responds by revealing that he is Nṛga, an ancient king celebrated for performing thousands of sacrifices, setting the stage for explaining how his present condition arose.