Shloka 16

Aṣṭāvakra–Kahoda Upākhyāna: Śvetaketu’s Āśrama, Sarasvatī, and the Origin of Aṣṭāvakra

Devanagari script

शरणैषिपरित्यागं कथं साध्विति मन्यसे । आहारार्थ समारम्भस्तव चायं॑ विहंगम

Transliteration

śaraṇaiṣiparityāgaṃ kathaṃ sādhv iti manyase | āhārārtha-samārambhas tava cāyaṃ vihaṅgama ||

Translation

鷹は言った。「庇護を求めて来た者を見捨てることが、どうして正しいと思えるのか。しかも、鳥よ、おまえのこの働きは結局、食のためにほかならぬ。」

Word by Word

शरणैषिO seeker of refuge

परित्यागम्abandonment, giving up

कथम्how?

साधुrightly, well

इतिthus

मन्यसेyou think, you consider

आहारार्थfor the sake of food

समारम्भःundertaking, attempt

तवof you, your

चand

अयम्this

विहंगमO bird

Speaker

श्येन उवाच

Characters & Entities

śyena (hawk)

vihaṅgama (a bird addressed; refuge-seeker context)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse frames a dharma-question: abandoning a refuge-seeker is portrayed as morally improper, while also exposing the counter-motive of “food” behind the other bird’s action—highlighting how ethical claims can be entangled with self-interest.

What is happening in the narrative?

In a dialogue involving the hawk, the hawk challenges another bird about the propriety of giving up someone who has sought protection, and points out that the other’s initiative is driven by the need for sustenance.