Shloka 66
Śama-prāptiḥ — Gautamī–Lubdhaka–Pannaga–Mṛtyu–Kāla-saṃvāda
Restraint through the Analysis of Karma and Time
मृत्युने कहा--व्याध! हम दोनों कालके अधीन होनेके कारण विवश हैं। हम तो केवल उसके आदेशका पालनमात्र करते हैं। यदि तुम अच्छी तरह विचार करोगे तो हमलोगोंपर दोषारोपण नहीं करोगे ।।
lubdhaka uvāca | yuvām ubhī kālavaśau yadi me mṛtyupannagau | harṣakrodhau yathā syātām etad icchāmi veditum ||
Sinabi ng mangangaso: “O Kamatayan at O Ahas, kung kayo’y kapwa kumikilos sa ilalim ng pag-uutos ng Kāla (Panahon/Tadhana), nais kong maunawaan ito: bakit sumisibol sa akin ang galak sa taong gumagawa ng kabutihan sa kapwa, at bakit sumisibol ang poot sa inyong dalawa na nagdadala ng pinsala? Kung ang lahat ay nakagapos sa kautusan ng Panahon, sa anong batayan nananatili sa isip ang papuri at sisi, ligaya at hinanakit?”
लुब्धक उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse raises the ethical problem of responsibility under determinism: even if agents like Death and the Serpent act under Kāla’s command, human beings still experience praise/blame through emotions like joy and anger. It invites reflection on how moral judgment operates when actions are seen as compelled by Time.
The hunter addresses Death and the Serpent directly. After hearing that they merely follow Kāla’s ordinance, he questions why he nonetheless feels happiness toward benefactors and anger toward harmful agents—seeking a principled explanation for these reactions if all are under Time’s control.