Shloka 2
Aṣṭāvakra–Kahoda Upākhyāna: Śvetaketu’s Āśrama, Sarasvatī, and the Origin of Aṣṭāvakra
विहितं भक्षणं राजन् पीड्यमानस्य मे क्षुधा । मा रक्षीर्धर्मलो भेन धर्ममुत्सृष्टवानसि,तब बाजने कहा--राजन्! समस्त भूपाल केवल आपको ही धर्मात्मा बताते हैं। फिर आप यह सम्पूर्ण धर्मोंसे विरुद्ध कर्म कैसे करना चाहते हैं। महाराज! मैं भूखसे कष्ट पा रहा हूँ और कबूतर मेरा आहार नियत किया गया है। आप धर्मके लोभसे इसकी रक्षा न करें। वास्तवमें इसे आश्रय देकर आपने धर्मका परित्याग ही किया है
vihitaṁ bhakṣaṇaṁ rājan pīḍyamānasya me kṣudhā | mā rakṣīr dharmalobhena dharmam utsṛṣṭavān asi ||
O falcão disse: “Ó rei, a fome me atormenta, e este pombo foi designado como meu alimento de direito. Não o protejas por um apego ganancioso ao ‘dharma’. Ao conceder-lhe refúgio contra o que foi ordenado, na verdade abandonaste o próprio dharma.”
श्येन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights a dharma-conflict: compassion toward the weak (protecting the refugee pigeon) versus fairness/justice toward another being’s rightful claim (the hawk’s need to eat). It warns that clinging to the label of ‘dharma’ without considering competing duties can itself become ‘dharmalobha’—attachment to moral self-image rather than true moral balance.
A hawk addresses the king after a pigeon has sought the king’s protection. The hawk argues that the pigeon is its ordained prey and that the king, by protecting it, is denying the hawk’s survival. The hawk challenges the king’s understanding of dharma, setting up the famous test of righteousness in the Śibi episode.