Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 115
Ahiṃsā as Threefold Restraint (Mind–Speech–Action) and the Ethics of Consumption
मासे चतुर्थे सम्प्राप्ते श्वापद: सम्प्रजायते । श्वापदो दश वर्षाणि द्वीपी वर्षाणि पजच च
māse caturthe samprāpte śvāpadḥ samprajāyate | śvāpado daśa varṣāṇi dvīpī varṣāṇi pañca ca |
Yudhiṣṭhira said: “When the fourth month is reached, one is born as a wild beast. One remains in the condition of a śvāpad (a predatory animal such as a wolf) for ten years, and then for five years one becomes a dvīpin—such as a tiger or leopard.”
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Actions have consequences that can extend across births; unethical conduct may lead to rebirth in violent, suffering-laden animal forms for long durations, underscoring the need for dharmic self-restraint.
Yudhiṣṭhira is describing a sequence of rebirth outcomes measured by time: after a specified period (“the fourth month”), a being is said to be born as a predatory animal, remaining first as a śvāpada for ten years and then as a dvīpin for five years.