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 disse: “Que a mulher que roubou as fibras do talo de lótus (mṛṇāla/bisa) incorra neste pecado: permanecer no lar, entre os seus, mas viver em desonra, comendo apenas sattu (farinha tostada) ao fim do dia; que, maculada, se torne imprópria para o gozo conjugal do marido; e que, embora seja uma brāhmaṇī, dê à luz um filho feroz, de ânimo guerreiro, de temperamento áspero como o de um 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.