Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 1636
Aṣṭāvakra’s Visit to Kubera: Hospitality, Temptation, and the Ethics of Restraint (अष्टावक्र-वैश्रवणोपाख्यानम्)
तत्प्रसादान्मया प्राप्तं ब्राह्मुण्यं दुर्लभ महत् | तदनन्तर विश्वामित्रजीने कहा
tatprasādān mayā prāptaṃ brāhmaṇyaṃ durlabhaṃ mahat |
“Sa pamamagitan ng Kanyang biyaya, natamo ko ang dakila at lubhang bihirang kalagayan ng pagiging brāhmaṇa.” Pagkaraan ay sinabi ni Viśvāmitra: “O Hari! Noong ako’y kṣatriya pa, nabuo sa aking loob ang matibay na panata: ‘Ako’y magiging brāhmaṇa.’ Taglay ang layuning iyon, sinamba ko si Panginoong Śaṅkara (Śiva); at sa Kanyang pabor, natamo ko ang brāhmaṇatva na napakahirap makamtan.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage emphasizes that lofty spiritual status is not merely inherited but can be attained through firm resolve, disciplined worship/austerity, and—decisively—divine grace; true 'brāhmaṇya' is presented as a rare ethical-spiritual attainment.
Within Vaiśaṃpāyana’s narration, Viśvāmitra recounts to a king that he once lived as a kṣatriya, resolved to become a brāhmaṇa, worshipped Śaṅkara for that aim, and by Śiva’s favor obtained the rare state of brahminhood.