Shloka 26
Dāna-Śreṣṭhatā: Abhaya, Anugraha, and the Ethics of Honoring the Worthy (दानश्रेष्ठता: अभय-अनुग्रह-विप्रपूजा)
यत् ते वने5स्मिन् नृपते दृष्टं दिव्यं निदर्शनम्
yat te vane 'smin nṛpate dṛṣṭaṃ divyaṃ nidarśanam | nareśvara rājan asmin vane tvaṃ yo divyo dṛśyo dṛṣṭavān sa svargasyaikā jhāṅkā āsīt | nṛpaśreṣṭha bhūpāla tvam ātmanaḥ patnyā saha asminn eva śarīreṇa kiñcit kālaṃ svargīya-sukham anubhūtavān asi ||
यत्ते वनेऽस्मिन्नृपते दृष्टं दिव्यं निदर्शनम् । तद् स्वर्गस्यैव राजेन्द्र झाँकीवद् विद्धि पार्थिव ॥ सभार्यया च देहेन मुहूर्तं स्वर्गसौख्यं त्वं अनुभूतवान् नृपोत्तम ॥
च्यवन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores that extraordinary pleasures and visions—like a glimpse of heaven—can arise as fruits of merit, but they are temporary. A ruler should not cling to such experiences; instead, he should ground his life in dharma, which alone gives lasting welfare beyond momentary delight.
Sage Cyavana addresses a king who has witnessed a divine spectacle in a forest. Cyavana explains that what the king saw was a preview of heaven, and that the king, along with his queen, briefly experienced heavenly happiness while still embodied.