Shloka 6
Purañjana Goes Hunting — The Chariot of the Body, Violence of Passion, and Return to Conjugal Bondage
तीर्थेषु प्रतिदृष्टेषु राजा मेध्यान् पशून् वने । यावदर्थमलं लुब्धो हन्यादिति नियम्यते ॥ ६ ॥
tīrtheṣu pratidṛṣṭeṣu rājā medhyān paśūn vane yāvad-artham alaṁ lubdho hanyād iti niyamyate
The scriptures lay down this rule: if a king is overly drawn to eating flesh, then, in accordance with the Vedic directions for sacrifice, after visiting holy places he may go to the forest and kill only such ‘medhya’ animals—fit for offering—as are required. Unnecessary or unrestricted slaughter is not permitted. The Vedas regulate animal-killing to curb the wasteful excess of the foolish, driven by passion and ignorance.
The question may be raised why a living being should be restricted in sense gratification. If a king, to learn how to kill, may go to the forest and kill animals, why should a living entity, who has been given senses, not be allowed unrestricted sense gratification? At the present moment this argument is put forward even by so-called svāmīs and yogīs who publicly say that because we have senses we must satisfy them by sense gratification. These foolish svāmīs and yogīs, however, do not know the injunctions of the śāstras. Indeed, sometimes these rascals come out to defy the śāstras. They even publicly announce that there should be no more śāstras, no more books. “Just come to me,” they say, “and I shall touch you, and you will become immediately spiritually advanced.”
FAQs
This verse implies that merely visiting tīrthas is not enough; if greed remains, one may still act harmfully, and only external rules restrain such behavior.
To show that material greed can persist despite religious exposure, and that dharma therefore prescribes strict limits—actions must be only for necessity, not for indulgence.
Spiritual practices should reduce greed; also, even necessary consumption should be limited to genuine need, avoiding excess driven by desire.