Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 50
Ahiṃsā as Threefold Restraint (Mind–Speech–Action) and the Ethics of Consumption
कृमिभावाद् विमुक्तस्तु ततो जायति गर्दभ: । गर्दभ: पञ्च वर्षाणि पज्च वर्षाणि सूकर:
kṛmibhāvād vimuktas tu tato jāyati gardabhaḥ | gardabhaḥ pañca varṣāṇi pañca varṣāṇi sūkaraḥ ||
যুধিষ্ঠিৰে ক’লে—কৃমি-ভাৱৰ পৰা মুক্ত হ’লে সি গাধা হৈ জন্ম লয়। গাধা ৰূপে পাঁচ বছৰ থাকে, তাৰ পাছত পাঁচ বছৰ শূকৰ-যোনিত থাকে।
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse conveys a karmic-moral lesson: actions can lead to degraded births, and embodied states may follow a sequence over time, emphasizing ethical responsibility and the long arc of consequences.
Yudhiṣṭhira is speaking within a didactic discussion on dharma and karmic results, describing a progression of rebirth from a worm to a donkey and then to a pig, each for a specified duration.