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Shloka 183

Ahiṃsā as Threefold Restraint (Mind–Speech–Action) and the Ethics of Consumption

एतत्‌ त्रयमवाप्तव्यमधर्मपरिवर्जितम्‌ | धर्म, अर्थ और काम--ये तीन जीवनके फल हैं, अतः मनुष्यको अधर्मके त्यागपूर्वक इन तीनोंको उपलब्ध करना चाहिये

etat trayam avāptavyam adharmaparivarjitam | dharma-artha-kāmāḥ trayo jīvanaphalāni, ataḥ manuṣyeṇa adharmasya tyāgapūrvakaṃ etāni trīṇi avāptavyāni ||

Yudhiṣṭhira sprach: „Diese drei sind zu erlangen, doch ohne Zuflucht zur Unrechtmäßigkeit. Dharma, artha und kāma sind die drei Früchte des Menschenlebens; darum soll der Mensch alle drei nur gewinnen, nachdem er adharma verworfen hat.“

एतत्this
एतत्:
Karta
TypePronoun
Rootएतद्
FormNeuter, Nominative, Singular
त्रयम्a triad; threefold set
त्रयम्:
Karta
TypeNoun
Rootत्रय
FormNeuter, Nominative, Singular
अवाप्तव्यम्to be obtained; should be attained
अवाप्तव्यम्:
Karma
TypeAdjective
Rootअवाप्
FormNeuter, Nominative, Singular, Gerundive (तव्यत्), passive necessity
अधर्मby/with unrighteousness; by adharma
अधर्म:
Karana
TypeNoun
Rootअधर्म
FormMasculine, Instrumental, Singular
परिवर्जितम्avoided; shunned; excluded
परिवर्जितम्:
Karta
TypeAdjective
Rootपरि + वर्ज्
FormNeuter, Nominative, Singular, Past passive participle (क्त)

युधिछिर उवाच

Y
Yudhiṣṭhira

Educational Q&A

Human goals—dharma (righteousness), artha (material welfare), and kāma (legitimate enjoyment)—may be pursued, but only by excluding adharma; ethical means are non-negotiable even when seeking prosperity or pleasure.

In the Anuśāsana Parva’s instruction-focused dialogue, Yudhiṣṭhira articulates a normative principle about the proper pursuit of life’s aims, emphasizing that the three goals must be sought with the prior abandonment of unrighteous conduct.