Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 37
Ahiṃsā as Threefold Restraint (Mind–Speech–Action) and the Ethics of Consumption
इहलोके च स प्राणी जन्मप्रभृति पार्थिव । सुकृतं कर्म वै भुद्धक्ते धर्मस्य फलमाश्रित:
ihaloke ca sa prāṇī janmaprabhṛti pārthiva | sukṛtaṃ karma vai bhunkte dharmasya phalam āśritaḥ ||
O king, in this very world a living being, from the time of birth onward, truly experiences the results of meritorious deeds—enjoying them as the fruit that rests upon (and arises from) dharma. The verse underscores that ethical action is not merely abstract: its consequences are lived and tasted within embodied life.
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Meritorious action (sukṛta-karma) yields tangible results, and these are experienced by living beings in this very life; the 'fruit' is grounded in dharma, emphasizing ethical causality rather than mere ritual or theory.
Yudhiṣṭhira addresses a kingly interlocutor and articulates a principle of dharma: from birth onward, beings partake of the consequences of their good deeds, framing dharma as a practical source of lived outcomes.