Ahiṃsā as Threefold Restraint (Mind–Speech–Action) and the Ethics of Consumption
ये पापानि नराः कृत्वा निरस्यन्ति व्रतैः सदा । सुखदुःखसमायुक्ता व्यथितास्ते भवन्त्युत
ye pāpāni narāḥ kṛtvā nirasyanti vrataiḥ sadā | sukhaduḥkhasamāyuktā vyathitās te bhavanty uta ||
Yudhiṣṭhira sprach: „Jene Männer, die Sünden begehen und sie dann unablässig durch Gelübde und Observanzen abzustreifen suchen, bleiben an das Wechselspiel von Lust und Schmerz gebunden; dennoch werden sie gequält. Ihre innere Unruhe findet keinen festen Ruheort, denn Sühne ohne wahrhafte Umkehr lässt die Wurzeln des Unrechts unversehrt.“
युधिछिर उवाच
Expiatory vows alone do not secure peace if one continues sinful conduct; without genuine inner change and restraint, a person remains trapped in recurring pleasure and pain and lives in ongoing distress.
In the Anuśāsana Parva’s dharma-instruction setting, Yudhiṣṭhira speaks about the moral psychology of wrongdoing and atonement, emphasizing that repeated sin followed by ritual remedies still results in suffering.