Shloka 29
Umā–Maheśvara-saṃvāda: Varṇa-bhraṃśa, Ācāra (Vṛtta), and Karmic Ascent/Decline
अग्निरुवाच पादमुद्यम्य यो मर्त्य: स्पृशेद् गाश्न सुदुर्मति: । ब्राह्मणं वा महाभागं दीप्यमानं तथानलम्
agnir uvāca pādam udyamya yo martyaḥ spṛśed gāśna sudurmatīḥ | brāhmaṇaṃ vā mahābhāgaṃ dīpyamānaṃ tathānalam ||
Agni sprach: „Jener Sterbliche von bösem Sinn, der den Fuß erhebt, um eine Kuh zu treten—oder der ebenso einen hochbegnadeten Brāhmaṇa angreift, der in geistigem Glanz wie Feuer lodert—begeht einen schwersten Frevel. Solche Taten verletzen die Grundfesten des Dharma, denn sie sind Gewalt gegen jene, die die Welt tragen und heiligen.“
धर्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse condemns violence and contempt toward two pillars of dharmic society: the cow (symbol of sustenance and sacrifice) and the brāhmaṇa (symbol of learning, ritual, and spiritual authority). To strike them is portrayed as a grave moral failure rooted in a corrupted mind.
Agni is speaking in a didactic context within the Anuśāsana Parva, warning about the severe wrongdoing involved in raising one’s foot to strike a cow, or in attacking an illustrious brāhmaṇa whose spiritual brilliance is likened to fire.