Shloka 25
ब्रह्मस्वहरण-निषेधः — Prohibition of Appropriating Brahmin Property
Brahmasva
त्वमिमं सम्प्रपन्नाय संशयं ब्रूहि पृच्छते । चाण्डालत्वात् कथमहं मुच्येयमिति सत्तम
tvam imaṁ samprapannāya saṁśayaṁ brūhi pṛcchate | cāṇḍālatvāt katham ahaṁ mucyeyam iti sattama ||
ഹേ സത്തമാ, സത്പുരുഷന്മാരിൽ ശ്രേഷ്ഠനേ! ഞാൻ നിന്റെ ശരണം പ്രാപിച്ച് ഈ സംശയം ചോദിക്കുന്നു; ദയചെയ്ത് പറയുക—ചാണ്ഡാലത്വത്തിൽ നിന്ന് ഞാൻ എങ്ങനെ മോചിതനാകാം?
चाण्डाल उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a dharmic inquiry: a person seeks guidance not through pride of birth but through surrender and questioning. It foregrounds the ethical idea that transformation is pursued by taking refuge in the wise and asking how one may rise beyond a stigmatized condition through right conduct and spiritual discipline.
A caṇḍāla speaker approaches a revered ‘best of the virtuous’ figure, declares himself a supplicant, and asks for a clear answer to his doubt—specifically, the means to be released from caṇḍāla-status. The verse functions as the opening of a didactic exchange on dharma and uplift.