Shloka 24
Go-apahāra (Cattle Theft), Go-dāna (Cow-Gift), and Suvarṇa-dakṣiṇā (Gold Fee): Karmic Consequence and Purificatory Merit
पूर्व कृच्छूं चरिष्ये5हं पश्चाच्छुभमिति प्रभो । धर्मराजं ब्रुवन्नेवें पतितो5स्मि महीतले
pūrvaṃ kṛcchraṃ cariṣye'haṃ paścāc chubham iti prabho | dharmarājaṃ bruvann evaṃ patito'smi mahītale ||
“主啊！我愿先承受痛苦的艰难（罪业之报），然后再享受吉祥之果（功德之报）。”我正这样对法王说着，话音未落，便倒在大地之上。
ब्राह्मण उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds ethical responsibility and karmic sequencing: the speaker expresses willingness to face painful consequences first (kṛcchra) and only later enjoy auspicious results (śubha). It reflects a moral attitude of accepting suffering as due recompense rather than seeking to postpone or evade it.
A Brahmin addresses Dharmarāja (Yudhiṣṭhira), declaring his intention to undergo hardship first and then enjoy merit afterwards. As he says this, he suddenly falls to the ground, indicating an immediate dramatic turn—suggesting collapse, fainting, or the onset of a destined consequence.