Shloka 90

Adhyaya 8 — Harishchandra’s Trial: Truth, the Sale of Family, and Bondage to a Chandala

Sanskrit

हरिश्चन्द्र उवाच भगवन् । सूर्यवंशोत्थमात्मानं वेद्मे कौशिक । कथं चाण्डालदासत्वं गमिष्ये वित्तकामुकः ॥

Transliteration

hariścandra uvāca bhagavan | sūryavaṃśottham ātmānaṃ vedmi kauśika | kathaṃ caṇḍāla-dāsatvaṃ gamiṣye vitta-kāmukaḥ ||

Translation

Hariścandra disse: “Ó bem-aventurado, ó Kauśika, sei que nasci da dinastia solar. Como eu, ainda que desejoso de riqueza, poderia chegar ao estado de tornar-me escravo de um caṇḍāla?”

Word by Word

हरिश्चन्द्रःHariścandra

उवाचsaid

भगवन्O venerable one

सूर्यवंशोत्थम्sprung from the Solar line

आत्मानम्myself

वेद्मेI know

कौशिकO Kauśika (Viśvāmitra)

कथम्how?

चाण्डालदासत्वम्slavery to a Caṇḍāla

गमिष्येshall I go/come to (become)

वित्तकामुकःdesirous of wealth

Speakers

Hariścandra addressing Kauśika (sage interlocutor in the episode)

Verse Rasa

{ "primaryRasa": "karuna", "secondaryRasa": "dharma", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }

Key Themes

DharmaSatya (truthfulness)Karma and consequenceRoyal duty and downfallSocial status and sufferingTemptation/desire (kāma) for wealth

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

The verse foregrounds the shock of moral reversal: even one of noble birth (Solar dynasty) can fall into extreme degradation when desire for wealth (vitta-kāma) and the pressures of fate/testing operate. It prepares the listener for a dharmic lesson common to Purāṇic narrative: lineage alone is not a safeguard; choices, vows, and karmic trials determine lived reality.

How does this fit the Pancalakshana (5 characteristics)?

Primarily within Vaṃśa/Vaṃśānucarita (genealogy and dynastic narrative): the Solar dynasty reference (sūryavaṃśa) and the king’s life-story serve as exemplum. Secondarily it supports Dharma-śikṣā (ethical instruction) embedded in narrative, a common Purāṇic didactic mode.

What is the esoteric significance?

Symbolically, the fall from solar royalty to caṇḍāla-servitude dramatizes the stripping away of ego built on birth/status. ‘Solar lineage’ can signify inherited luminosity (self-image, prestige), while ‘servitude’ signifies the soul’s bondage when it becomes driven by craving (kāma) and attachment to possessions (vitta). The question ‘how can this happen?’ points to the hidden workings of karma and the purifying function of ordeal.