Shloka 4
Parāśara’s Counsel on बुद्धि (Discernment), Karma-Consequences, and Avoidance of Pāpānubandha Actions
कथं विनिहतो वृत्र: शक्रेण पुरुषर्षभ । धार्मिको विष्णुभक्तश्च तत्त्वज्ञश्न पदान्वये,पुरुषप्रवर! वृत्रासुर धर्मात्मा, भगवान् विष्णुका भक्त और वेदान्तके पदोंका अन्वय करके उनके तात्पर्यको ठीक-ठीक समझनेमें कुशल था तो भी इन्द्रने उसे कैसे मार डाला?
yudhiṣṭhira uvāca |
kathaṁ vinihato vṛtraḥ śakreṇa puruṣarṣabha |
dhārmiko viṣṇubhaktaś ca tattvajñaś ca padānvaye ||
Yudhiṣṭhira sprach: „O Stier unter den Menschen, wie konnte Vṛtra von Śakra (Indra) erschlagen werden? Denn Vṛtra war rechtschaffen, Viṣṇu ergeben und kundig darin, den wahren Sinn der Worte der Veden und der Vedānta samt ihren syntaktischen Verknüpfungen zu erkennen—wie also konnte Indra ihn töten?“
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a dharmic paradox: outward labels (asura/deva, enemy/ally) do not automatically determine righteousness. A person may be devoted and truth-knowing, yet still become subject to violent outcomes due to complex duties, cosmic order, prior causes, or exceptional circumstances. The question invites a nuanced inquiry into when killing can be justified and how dharma operates beyond simplistic moral binaries.
Yudhiṣṭhira, in the Śānti Parva’s ethical discussions, asks an elder (addressed as ‘puruṣarṣabha’) to explain how Indra could kill Vṛtra. He emphasizes Vṛtra’s virtues—righteousness, devotion to Viṣṇu, and competence in interpreting sacred teaching—thereby pressing for an explanation of the circumstances and moral logic behind Indra’s act.