Shloka 19
Dvaipāyana–Kīṭa Saṃvāda: Karmic Memory, Fear of Death, and Embodied Pleasure
एवमेषा महाराज चतुर्भि: कारणैर्वृता । अहिंसा तव निर्दिष्टा सर्वधर्मानुसंहिता,महाराज! इस प्रकार चार उपायोंसे जिसका पालन होता है, उस अहिंसा-धर्मका तुम्हारे लिये प्रतिपादन किया गया। यह सम्पूर्ण धर्मोमें ओतप्रोत है
evameṣā mahārāja caturbhiḥ kāraṇair vṛtā | ahiṃsā tava nirdiṣṭā sarvadharmānusaṃhitā ||
Bhishma said: “Thus, O great king, this principle—sustained and upheld through four supporting causes—has been set forth for you as ahiṃsā (non-violence). It is interwoven with, and gathers within itself, the essence of all dharmas.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhishma teaches that ahiṃsā (non-violence/non-injury) is not a minor or isolated virtue but a principle supported by multiple foundations and permeating all forms of dharma; it functions as a unifying ethical thread across duties and moral disciplines.
During Bhishma’s instruction to King Yudhiṣṭhira in the Anushasana Parva, he summarizes his exposition on ahiṃsā, stating that it is upheld through four supporting causes and that it is integrated with the entirety of dharma.