Shloka 32
दैव–पुरुषकार-प्रश्नः
Daiva–Puruṣakāra Inquiry: Fate and Human Effort
अश्वमेधादिभिर्यज्ञै: सत्कृत: कोसलाधिप: । महर्षिशापात् सौदास: पुरुषादत्वमागत:,(अब इसके विपरीत दृष्टन्त देते हैं--) अश्वमेध आदि यज्ञोंद्वारा सम्मानित होनेपर भी कोशलनरेश सौदासको महर्षि वसिष्ठके शापसे नरभक्षी राक्षस होना पड़ा
aśvamedhādibhir yajñaiḥ satkṛtaḥ kosalādhipaḥ | maharṣiśāpāt saudāsaḥ puruṣādatvam āgataḥ ||
(വിപരീത ദൃഷ്ടാന്തം) അശ്വമേധാദി യാഗങ്ങളാൽ ആദരിക്കപ്പെട്ടിരുന്നിട്ടും, കോസലാധിപൻ സൗദാസൻ മഹർഷിയുടെ ശാപം മൂലം മനുഷ്യഭക്ഷക രാക്ഷസാവസ്ഥയിൽ പതിച്ചു.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Ritual merit and royal prestige (even from great sacrifices like the Aśvamedha) cannot override the moral and karmic consequences of grave wrongdoing—especially offenses against great sages. Dharma requires inner restraint, humility, and reverence toward the righteous, not merely external piety.
Bhishma cites Saudāsa, the king of Kosala, as an illustrative example: despite being honored through major sacrifices, he became a man-eating being due to a maharshi’s curse (understood in tradition as Vasiṣṭha’s). The example is offered as a contrasting case (viparīta dṛṣṭānta) to emphasize the power of ethical transgression and the weight of a sage’s curse.