Shloka 38
Gārhasthya-Śreṣṭhatā and Kṣatriya-Daṇḍadhāraṇa
Householder Primacy and the Royal Duty of Punishment
शंख उवाच न कुप्ये तव धर्मज्ञ न त्वं दूषयसे मम । सुनिर्मलं कुल ब्रह्म॒न्नस्मिन् जगति विश्रुतम् । धर्मस्तु ते व्यतिक्रान्तस्ततस्ते निष्कृति: कृता
śaṅkha uvāca | na kupye tava dharmajña na tvaṃ dūṣayase mama | sunirmalaṃ kula brahmann asmin jagati viśrutam | dharmas tu te vyatikrāntas tatas te niṣkṛtiḥ kṛtā ||
商迦说道：“知法者啊，我并不恼你；你并未对我有任何过错。婆罗门啊，我们的族系在世间以极其清净、毫无瑕疵而闻名。然而你曾违越达摩——因此，那赎罪之行如今已成就。”
शंख उवाच
Educational Q&A
Moral fault is treated as a breach of dharma that calls for niṣkṛti (expiation), and once expiation is fulfilled, resentment is set aside. The verse links personal conduct with the ethical reputation of one’s lineage, emphasizing accountability without vindictiveness.
Śaṅkha addresses a brāhmaṇa, declaring he bears no anger and has not been personally wronged. He notes their lineage is famed for purity, then states that the other party had violated dharma and has now completed the required atonement—closing the matter ethically.