Shloka 3
धर्मनिन्दा–धर्मोपासनाफलम् तथा साध्वाचारलक्षणम्
Fruits of Disparaging vs. Observing Dharma; Marks of Good Conduct
वैश्यो वा क्षत्रिय: केन द्विजो वा क्षत्रियो भवेत् प्रतिलोम: कथं देव शक््यो धर्मो निवर्तितुम्,अथवा क्षत्रिय किस कर्मसे वैश्य होता है और ब्राह्मण किस कर्मसे क्षत्रिय हो जाता है? देव! प्रतिलोम धर्मको कैसे निवृत्त किया जा सकता है?
vaiśyo vā kṣatriyaḥ kena dvijo vā kṣatriyo bhavet | pratilomaḥ kathaṃ deva śakyo dharmo nivartitum ||
Śrī Maheśvara said: “By what conduct or means does a Vaiśya become a Kṣatriya, or a twice-born become a Kṣatriya? And, O Deva, how can the practice of pratiloma—an inversion against the proper order—be checked and brought to an end?”
श्रीमहेश्वर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames an ethical inquiry into how social identity (varna-status) is understood in relation to conduct and qualification, and how deviations that invert the intended moral-social order (pratiloma) can be restrained—implying that dharma is maintained not merely by birth-claims but by regulating conduct and upholding rightful norms.
Śrī Maheśvara poses pointed questions to a divine interlocutor: what qualifies someone to be regarded as a Kṣatriya (whether originally Vaiśya or otherwise dvija), and by what means the disorder termed pratiloma can be prevented—setting up a discussion on dharma, social roles, and the governance of ethical boundaries.