Shloka 18
मद्वाक्यान्मुज्च मे भार्या कस्मात् तां हृतवानसि । लोकपालो<सि लोकानां न लोकस्य विलोपक:
madvākyān muñca me bhāryāṃ kasmāt tāṃ hṛtavān asi | lokapālo 'si lokānāṃ na lokasya vilopakaḥ | muñca bhāryām utathyasya kasmāt tvaṃ hṛtavān asi ||
Arjuna berkata: “Menurut kata-kataku, lepaskan isteriku. Mengapa engkau membawanya lari? Engkau dilantik sebagai lokapāla, penjaga alam-alam, bukan pemusnah tertib dunia. Lepaskan isteri Utathya—mengapa engkau menculiknya?” Dalam rayuan ini, penutur menegur Varuṇa dengan mengingatkan kewajipan etika seorang lokapāla: kuasa harus melindungi tertib sosial dan moral, bukan mencabulinya melalui rampasan paksa terhadap isteri sah orang lain.
अजुन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Authority—especially divine or royal authority—must function as lokapāla (protector) and uphold dharma; taking another’s lawful spouse by force is condemned as a violation of social and moral order.
The speaker confronts Varuṇa for abducting a woman identified as a lawful wife and demands her release, arguing that Varuṇa’s role as a world-guardian obliges him to protect, not violate, the world’s order.