Shloka 36
Adhyaya 8 — Harishchandra’s Trial: Truth, the Sale of Family, and Bondage to a Chandala
पक्षिण ऊचुः ।
एतस्मिन्नन्तरे प्राप्तो विश्वामित्रो महातपाः ।
दृष्ट्वा तु तं हरिश्चन्द्रं पतितं भुवि मूर्च्छितम् ॥
pakṣiṇa ūcuḥ etasminnantare prāpto viśvāmitro mahātapāḥ / dṛṣṭvā tu taṃ hariścandraṃ patitaṃ bhuvi mūrcchitam
群鸟说道：其时，大苦行仙维湿瓦密多到来。见哈利施旃陀罗王倒卧在地、昏迷不醒，
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FAQs
The verse marks a turning point in a dharma-test narrative: the arrival of a powerful ṛṣi (Viśvāmitra) and the sight of Hariścandra collapsed underscores the extremity of trials that can accompany satya and vow-keeping. It frames dharma not as mere speech but as endurance under suffering and scrutiny.
Primarily Itihāsa/Ākhyāna employed for Dharma-śikṣā (ethical instruction), rather than sarga/pratisarga. In pancalakṣaṇa terms it aligns most closely with Vaṁśānucarita (narratives of royal lineages/kingly exemplars) used to teach dharma.
Symbolically, Viśvāmitra (tapas/inner fire) encountering Hariścandra (satya/unyielding truth) at the moment of collapse suggests the meeting of austerity and truth at the limit of human capacity. The fainting can be read as the ego and bodily endurance reaching exhaustion, setting the stage for a higher resolution where dharma is clarified beyond mere external appearances.