Shloka 23
Adhyaya 7 — Harishchandra Tested by Vishvamitra: The Gift of the Kingdom and the Pandava Curse-Backstory
उच्यतां भगवन् यत्ते दातव्यमविशङ्कितम् ।
दत्तमित्येव तद्विद्धि यद्यपि स्यात् सुदुर्लभम् ॥
ucyatāṃ bhagavan yat te dātavyam aviśaṅkitam |
dattam ity eva tad viddhi yady api syāt sudurlabham ||
“Xin hãy nói cho tôi, bậc Phúc Đức, điều gì nên bố thí mà không do dự. Hãy biết rằng, ngay khoảnh khắc người ta quyết định ‘đã cho’, thì thật sự đã cho—dẫu vật ấy cực kỳ khó đạt được.”
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FAQs
The verse elevates the inner resolve (saṅkalpa) behind charity: giving should be undertaken without wavering, and the moral act is grounded in the sincere commitment to give—even when the gift is costly or rare. It emphasizes courage, steadiness, and a non-calculating attitude in dāna.
This verse aligns most naturally with Dharma/Ācāra instruction rather than the cosmological fivefold (sarga, pratisarga, vaṃśa, manvantara, vaṃśānucarita). In pancalakṣaṇa terms it is ancillary ethical teaching (not a direct instance of sarga/pratisarga/vaṃśa/manvantara/vaṃśānucarita).
Esoterically, it points to the primacy of inner offering: the ‘gift’ is consummated at the level of intention, suggesting that relinquishment begins in consciousness. The rarity of the object symbolizes the ego’s attachments; overcoming hesitation is an inner victory over possessiveness and fear.