Shloka 3
Adhyaya 8 — Harishchandra’s Trial: Truth, the Sale of Family, and Bondage to a Chandala
पक्षिण ऊचुः विश्वामित्रवचः श्रुत्वा स राजा प्रययौ शनैः ।
शैव्यानुगतो दुःखी भार्यया बलपुत्रया ॥
pakṣiṇa ūcuḥ viśvāmitravacaḥ śrutvā sa rājā prayayau śanaiḥ | śaivyānugato duḥkhī bhāryayā balaputrayā ||
群鸟说道：听闻毗湿瓦密多罗之言后，那位国王缓缓启程；他怀着忧伤随从赛维娅而行，妻子与年幼之子亦相伴左右。
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FAQs
The verse underscores the ordinary human condition even in royalty: after receiving counsel, one still moves through sorrow and attachment (family, duty, uncertainty). It sets a moral tone that instruction (śravaṇa) is the first step, but inner transformation is gradual (śanaiḥ).
This verse is primarily narrative framing rather than a direct Pancalakṣaṇa unit. It most closely supports Vaṃśānucarita (dynastic/royal narrative) by tracking a king’s movement and circumstances, serving as connective tissue leading into the larger theological discourse.
‘Going slowly’ (śanaiḥ) while ‘sorrowful’ (duḥkhī) symbolizes the jīva’s burdened progression under saṃsāric conditioning. The accompaniment of wife and young son highlights binding ties (bandhana) that later make the turn toward refuge (śaraṇāgati)—a thematic doorway into the Devī-centered resolution that follows in the broader cycle.