Mahabharata 3.201.7 — Vana Parva, Adhyaya 201, Shloka 7
Dharma-vyādha’s Analysis of Moral Decline and the Mahābhūta–Guṇa Schema (धर्मव्याधोपदेशः)
गुरौ चानृतिके पापे कृतघ्ने ग्रामयाजके । वेदविक्रयिणे दत्तं तथा वृषलयाजके
gurau cānṛtike pāpe kṛtaghne grāmayājake | vedavikrayiṇe dattaṃ tathā vṛṣalayājake ||
قال ماركندِيا: «العطيةُ التي تُعطى لمعلّمٍ مخادعٍ آثمٍ كذّاب؛ ولجاحدٍ للمعروف؛ ولكاهنِ قريةٍ يُقيم الشعائر بالأجرة؛ ولمن يبيع الفيدا؛ وكذلك لكاهنٍ يُجري الطقوس للمنبوذين—فمثل هذا العطاء ملوّثٌ في ميزان الدارما ولا يُثمر الاستحقاقَ الطاهر الذي يُرتجى من الدانا.»
मार्कण्डेय उवाच
Educational Q&A
Charity is not judged only by the act of giving; the recipient’s truthfulness, gratitude, and adherence to dharma matter. Giving to deceitful, sinful, ungrateful, or professionally/ritually compromised recipients is portrayed as morally flawed and less fruitful in merit.
Mārkaṇḍeya is instructing his listeners on dharmic standards, specifically identifying categories of recipients considered unworthy for dāna. The verse functions as a normative warning within a broader discourse on righteous conduct.
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