Shloka 5
मोक्षोपाय-निर्णयः
Determination of the Means to Liberation
इुमत्सेन उवाच अथ चेदवधो धर्मो5धर्म: को जातु चिद् भवेत् | दस्यवश्नेन्न हन्येरन् सत्यवन् संकरो भवेत्
dyumatsena uvāca | atha ced avadho dharmo 'dharmaḥ ko jātu cid bhavet | dasyavaś cen na hanyeran satyavan saṅkaro bhavet ||
Dyumatsena sprach: „O Satyavān! Wenn es je ‘Dharma’ heißen sollte, selbst den Schuldigen nicht zu töten, was könnte dann überhaupt noch als ‘Adharma’ gelten? Denn werden Diebe und Räuber nicht bestraft und getötet, so entstehen unter den Menschen gesellschaftliche Verwirrung und die Vermischung der sittlichen Ordnung.“
इुमत्सेन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse argues that protecting dharma may require firm punishment of wrongdoers; if even the guilty are never restrained, adharma spreads and society falls into moral and social disorder (saṅkara).
Dyumatsena addresses Satyavān, reasoning about governance and justice: he challenges the idea that sparing criminals is always righteous, warning that unchecked thieves and bandits lead to widespread disorder among the people.