Shloka 12
Dāna-Śreṣṭhatā: On the Superiority of Giving
Maitreya–Vyāsa Exemplum
वहतां सुमहाभारं संनिकर्षे स्वनं प्रभो । नृणां च संवाहयतां श्रूयते विविध: स्वन:
vahatāṃ sumahābhāraṃ saṃnikarṣe svanaṃ prabho | nṛṇāṃ ca saṃvāhayatāṃ śrūyate vividhaḥ svanaḥ ||
“Panginoon, naririnig ko sa napakalapit ang ugong ng karitong may dalang napakabigat na karga. Naririnig ko rin ang sari-saring sigaw at tawag ng mga taong nagpapatakbo nito. Kapag ang ganitong ingay ay tumatama sa aking pandinig, sinasakmal ako ng takot na baka dumating ang kariton at durugin ako; kaya ako’y tumatakas nang nagmamadali. Masdan—naroon ang lagapak ng latigo sa mga baka, at sila’y paparito, hinihingal sa bigat ng pasan.”
कीट उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even the smallest beings experience fear and seek safety; dharma therefore includes attentiveness and compassion so that human activity does not harm the vulnerable—whether by negligence (a cart crushing a creature) or by cruelty (whipping overburdened oxen).
The speaker, a small creature (kīṭa), tells a lord/master that it hears the nearby rumble of a heavily loaded cart and the varied shouts of the men driving it; fearing it may be crushed, it runs away, while also noting the whip striking the oxen and their labored breathing under the load.