Shloka 7
Aṣṭāvakra–Bandi Vāda at Janaka’s Assembly
Numerical Cosmology and Restitution
शुश्रूषवश्चापि जितेन्द्रिया श्न ज्ञानागमे चापि गताः सम निष्ठाम् न बाल इत्यवमन्तव्यमाहु- बलि प्यन्निर्दहति स्पृश्यमान:,साथ ही, हम गुरुजनोंके सेवक, जितेन्द्रिय तथा ज्ञानशास्त्रमें परिनिष्ठित भी हैं। अवस्थामें बालक होनेके कारण ही किसी ब्राह्मणको अपमानित करना उचित नहीं बताया गया है; क्योंकि आगकी छोटी-सी चिनगारी भी यदि छू जाय तो वह जला डालती है
Aṣṭāvakra uvāca: śuśrūṣavaś cāpi jitendriyāḥ sma jñānāgame cāpi gatāḥ samāṁ niṣṭhām | na bāla ity avamantavyam āhur bālyam api agnir dahati spṛśyamānaḥ ||
アシュターヴァクラは言った。「われらもまた長老に仕え、諸根を制し、聖なる知の修行に堅く立っている。ゆえに、年若いというだけでバラモンを侮ってはならぬ。火の小さな火花でさえ、触れれば人を焼くのだ。」
अष्टावक्र उवाच
Educational Q&A
Do not judge or disrespect a brāhmaṇa (or a spiritually grounded person) based on youth or outward appearance; inner discipline and spiritual potency matter. Like a tiny spark, even what seems small can have real power and consequences.
Aṣṭāvakra is asserting the standing of himself (and his side) as disciplined, learned, and devoted to elders, and he rebukes the tendency to belittle someone as ‘just a child.’ He supports this with a vivid analogy: contact with even a small spark of fire causes burning.