Shloka 20
यवक्रीत-वधः
The Slaying of Yavakrīta at Raibhya’s Hermitage
यवक्रीतं स हत्वा तु राक्षसो रैभ्यमागमत् | अनुज्ञातस्तु रैभ्येण तया नार्या सहावसत्,इस प्रकार यवक्रीतको मारकर राक्षस रैभ्यके पास लौट आया और उनकी अज्ञा ले उस कृत्यास्वरूपा रमणीके साथ उनकी सेवामें रहने लगा
yavakrītaṃ sa hatvā tu rākṣaso raibhyam āgamat | anujñātas tu raibhyena tayā nāryā sahāvasat |
Having slain Yavakrīta, the rākṣasa returned to Raibhya. With Raibhya’s permission, he then remained there together with that woman—she who had been fashioned as a magical instrument—serving in Raibhya’s household. The episode underscores how acts driven by vengeance and misuse of ascetic power lead to further moral entanglement rather than restoration of dharma.
लोगश उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical danger of vengeance and the misuse of extraordinary powers: even when an enemy is destroyed, the agents and instruments of harm remain bound to the cycle of wrongdoing, creating further moral complications rather than re-establishing dharma.
After killing Yavakrīta, the rākṣasa goes back to the sage Raibhya. With Raibhya’s consent, he stays there along with the woman associated with the act (understood in context as the kṛtyā-like magical creation), remaining in Raibhya’s service.