Shloka 12
कुण्डधारोपाख्यानम्
Kuṇḍadhāra-Upākhyāna: Dharma’s Superiority over Wealth and Desire
प्रजापतिस्तानुवाच विषमं कृतमित्युत
prajāpatistān uvāca viṣamaṃ kṛtam ity uta
Bhīṣma sprach: „Daraufhin wandte sich Prajāpati an sie und erklärte: ‚Dies ist wahrlich ungerecht, ungleich getan worden.‘“
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds ethical discernment: actions and arrangements should be assessed for fairness and balance. Calling something viṣama (“unequal/unjust”) implies that dharma requires equity, proportion, and right ordering rather than arbitrary or biased outcomes.
Within Bhīṣma’s instruction in the Śānti Parva, a prior episode is being cited where Prajāpati speaks to certain beings (“them”) and criticizes what has been done as viṣama—an unjust or improper act—setting up a corrective teaching or reordering consistent with dharma.