Shloka 16
Aṣṭāvakra’s Visit to Kubera: Hospitality, Temptation, and the Ethics of Restraint (अष्टावक्र-वैश्रवणोपाख्यानम्)
विश्वामित्रस्तदोवाच क्षत्रियो5हं तदाभवम् | ब्राह्मणो5हं भवानीति मया चाराधितो भव:
Viśvāmitras tadovāca kṣatriyo ’haṃ tadābhavam | brāhmaṇo ’haṃ bhavānīti mayā cārādhito bhavaḥ ||
Vaiśaṃpāyana berkata: Lalu Viśvāmitra mengisytiharkan, “Pada waktu itu aku seorang Kṣatriya. Kini aku seorang Brāhmaṇa.” Demikianlah, melalui pemujaanku yang tekun, Tuhan (Śiva) berkenan dan mengurniakan perubahan itu.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights that spiritual attainment and ethical-spiritual identity can be shaped by tapas (austerity) and sincere devotion; divine grace (here, Bhava/Śiva) responds to disciplined effort, enabling inner transformation beyond one’s earlier social identity.
Within Vaiśampāyana’s narration, Viśvāmitra states that he was formerly a Kṣatriya but became a Brāhmaṇa, attributing this change to having propitiated Bhava (Śiva), who was pleased and granted the result.