Shloka 14
Vidura’s Message to Dhṛtarāṣṭra: Authorization for Dāna and Public Welfare (विदुरवाक्यम्—दानानुज्ञा)
शशलोमा च राजा55सीदू राजन् परमधार्मिक: । सम्यगस्मिन् वने तप्त्वा ततो दिवमवाप्तवान्,राजन! परम धर्मात्मा राजा शशलोमाने भी इसी वनमें उत्तम तपस्या करके स्वर्ग प्राप्त किया था
śaśalomā ca rājā āsīd rājan paramadhārmikaḥ | samyag asmin vane taptvā tato divam avāptavān, rājan |
Nārada nói: “Tâu Đại vương, thuở trước có một bậc quân vương chí công chí thiện tên là Śaśalomā. Ngài đã tu khổ hạnh đúng pháp ngay trong khu rừng này, rồi sau đó đạt đến cõi trời, tâu Đại vương.”
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
Properly undertaken tapas (austere discipline) grounded in dharma can elevate even a ruler to the highest posthumous goal described here—attainment of heaven—showing that ethical conduct and sincere spiritual effort are decisive, not mere status.
Nārada cites an exemplary precedent: he tells the addressed king that a former ruler, Śaśalomā, practiced austerities in the same forest and, by doing so rightly, attained heaven—strengthening the authority of the forest-ascetic ideal within the episode.