Shloka 10
Duḥṣantasya Vana-praveśaḥ
King Duḥṣanta’s Entry into the Forest Hunt
धर्मशीला जनपदा: सुसंतोषाश्न साधव: । न च मिथ्याप्रलापो>त्र स्वैरेष्वपि कुतोडन्यथा
dharmaśīlā janapadāḥ susantoṣāś ca sādhavaḥ | na ca mithyāpralāpo 'tra svair eṣv api kuto 'nyathā ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “The people of that land were devoted to dharma—contented and virtuous. In that country there was no false or frivolous speech; even in matters left to one’s own choice, how could there be any deviation from what is right?”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
A society grounded in dharma is marked by contentment, virtue, and truthfulness; when people are ethically formed, even personal freedom (svaira) does not lead to wrongdoing or ‘otherwise’ conduct.
Vaiśampāyana is describing the moral character of a particular country’s inhabitants, emphasizing their righteous nature and the absence of false speech as a sign of a well-ordered, dharmic community.