Shloka 55
Dasyu-maryādā and Buddhi-guided Rāja-nīti (दस्युमर्यादा तथा बुद्धिप्रधान-राजनीति)
कस्माद देवासुरा: पूर्वमन्योन्यमभिजघ्निरे । यदि कालेन निर्याणं सुखं दु:खं भवाभवौ
brahmadatta uvāca | kasmād devāsurāḥ pūrvam anyonyam abhijaghnire | yadi kālena niryāṇaṃ sukhaṃ duḥkhaṃ bhavābhavau |
Brahmadatta nói: “Nếu sự lìa đời, cùng vui sướng và khổ đau, thăng trầm—mọi được mất—đều do Thời gian (Kāla) mà thành, thì vì sao thuở xưa chư thiên và a-tu-la lại giao chiến, đánh ngã lẫn nhau? Nếu Thời gian là kẻ duy nhất định đoạt kết quả, bạo lực còn có mục đích gì?”
ब्रह्मदत्त उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a philosophical challenge: if Time (kāla) alone governs death, pleasure, pain, and rise or fall, then human (or divine) agency—especially violent action—seems purposeless. It invites reflection on how moral responsibility and effort can be meaningful even within a worldview that emphasizes kāla as a supreme force.
Brahmadatta questions a doctrine that attributes all outcomes to Time. He points to the ancient wars between devas and asuras as evidence: if Time alone determines victory, defeat, and death, why did they engage in mutual slaughter? The question presses the interlocutor to reconcile cosmic determinism with the observed reality of conflict and choice.