Shloka 14
Damayantī’s Lament, Serpent-Seizure, Rescue by the Hunter, and the Curse
यथा यथा हि नृपति: पुष्करेणैव जीयते । तथा तथास्य वै द्यूते रागो भूयोडभिवर्धते
yathā yathā hi nṛpatiḥ puṣkareṇaiva jīyate | tathā tathāsya vai dyūte rāgo bhūyo ’bhivardhate ||
Wika ni Bṛhadaśva: “Sapagkat sa tuwing natatalo ang hari kay Puṣkara sa sugal ng mga dice, lalo pang sumisidhi ang kanyang pagnanasa sa pagsusugal. Bawat pagkatalo’y hindi pumipigil, kundi lalo pang nagpapakain sa kanyang pagkakapit, at ibinabalik siya sa larong siyang sumisira sa kanya.”
बृहृदश्चव उवाच
Educational Q&A
Repeated defeat does not necessarily cure a vice; in gambling, loss can intensify rāga (craving). The verse warns that attachment grows through the very cycle of compulsion, highlighting the need for self-restraint and wise avoidance of destructive habits.
Bṛhadaśva, recounting the story of Nala, explains how Nala’s repeated losses to Puṣkara at dice only increased his desire to keep playing. The line diagnoses the psychological spiral that drives Nala deeper into ruin.