Adhyaya 70 — The King Confronts the Rakshasa and Restores the Brahmin’s Wife
राक्षस उवाच प्रापयामि तवादेशादिमां भर्तृगृहं प्रभो ।
यदन्यत्करणीयन्ते तदाज्ञापय पार्थिव ॥
rākṣasa uvāca prāpayāmi tavādeśād imāṃ bhartṛgṛhaṃ prabho / yad anyat karaṇīyante tad ājñāpaya pārthiva
O rākṣasa disse: «Por tua ordem, ó senhor, entregarei esta mulher à casa de seu marido. O que mais tiver de ser feito—ordena-o também, ó rei.»
Even a fearsome being can be bound to dharma through rightful authority and repentance. The king’s role includes ensuring restitution and safeguarding social order.
Manvantara-linked narrative illustrating dharma in practice; it functions as moral instruction embedded in a genealogical/epochal frame.
The rākṣasa represents untamed force; when subordinated to dharmic command, the same force becomes protective rather than predatory—an allegory for mastering impulses.