Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 54
Ahiṃsā as Threefold Restraint (Mind–Speech–Action) and the Ethics of Consumption
मनसापि गुरोर्भार्या यः शिष्यो याति पापकृत् । स उग्रान् प्रैति संसारानधर्मेणेह चेतसा
manasāpi guror bhāryāṁ yaḥ śiṣyo yāti pāpakṛt | sa ugrān praiti saṁsārān adharmeṇeha cetasā ||
Yudhiṣṭhira said: Even if only in his mind, the disciple who turns toward his teacher’s wife commits sin. By that unrighteous intention here itself, he goes on to dreadful cycles of rebirth, taking birth in terrifying wombs and conditions.
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that ethical transgression begins at the level of intention: even mentally entertaining desire toward one’s teacher’s wife violates dharma and generates grave karmic consequences.
In Anuśāsana Parva’s instruction on conduct and dharma, Yudhiṣṭhira states a strict rule of guru-śiṣya propriety: a disciple who even contemplates intimacy with the guru’s wife is deemed sinful and destined for harsh rebirths.