Shloka 128
Puṣkara-Śapatha Itihāsa (Agastya–Indra Dispute at the Tīrthas) | पुष्कर-शपथ-आख्यानम्
ज्ञातीनां गृहमध्यस्था सक्तूनत्तु दिनक्षये । अभोग्या वीरसूरस्तु बिसस्तैन्यं करोति या
jñātīnāṁ gṛhamadhyasthā saktūn attu dinakṣaye | abhogyā vīrasūrastu bisastainyaṁ karoti yā ||
Viśvāmitra berkata: “Wanita yang telah mencuri serabut tangkai teratai (mṛṇāla/bisa) hendaklah menanggung dosa ini: tinggal di dalam rumah di tengah kaum kerabat namun hidup dalam kehinaan, hanya makan sattu (tepung panggang) pada penghujung hari; kerana ternoda, dia menjadi tidak layak bagi kenikmatan suami; dan walaupun seorang brāhmaṇī, dia melahirkan seorang anak lelaki garang, laksana pahlawan, berperangai keras seperti kṣatriya.”
विश्वामित्र उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even seemingly minor theft is treated as adharma that stains one’s social standing and domestic harmony; the verse presents moral causality through consequences affecting reputation, marital life, and offspring.
Viśvāmitra is enumerating the karmic/social penalties assigned to a woman who commits theft of lotus-stalk fibres (bisa/mṛṇāla), describing a life of household disgrace, meagre food, conjugal exclusion, and the birth of a fierce warrior-like son despite her brāhmaṇa status.