Shloka 17
Chatra–Upānah Dāna: Origin Narrative
Jamadagni–Reṇukā–Sūrya Saṃvāda
वसिष्ठ उवाच अस्वाध्यायपरो लोके श्वानं च परिकर्षतु । पुरे च भिक्षुर्भवतु यस्ते हरति पुष्करम्
Vasiṣṭha uvāca: asvādhyāya-paro loke śvānaṃ ca parikarṣatu | pure ca bhikṣur bhavatu yas te harati puṣkaram ||
வசிஷ்டர் கூறினார்—உன் தாமரையைத் திருடியவன் இவ்வுலகில் சுவாத்யாயத்திலிருந்து விலகட்டும். நாயை இழுத்துக்கொண்டு அலைந்து, நகரங்களில் பிச்சைக்காரனாக வாழட்டும்.
वसिष्ठ उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames theft—especially of a valued or sacred object—as a dharmic lapse that results in loss of svādhyāya (sacred learning) and honor. The punishment is ethical and social: ignorance, disgrace, and dependence replace the stability and dignity that dharma protects.
Vasiṣṭha pronounces a curse upon an unnamed offender who has stolen ‘your lotus’ (puṣkara). He declares that the thief will become averse to sacred study, be reduced to dragging about with a dog, and wander in towns as a beggar—depicting a fall from cultured life into humiliation.