Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 54
ज्ञानपूर्वकृतं कर्म च्छादयन्ते हासाधव: । ज्ञानपूर्व विनश्यन्ति गूहमाना महाजने
jñānapūrvakṛtaṃ karma cchādayante hāsādhavaḥ | jñānapūrvaṃ vinaśyanti gūhamānā mahājane ||
Bhīṣma said: The wicked try to conceal even those sinful deeds they have committed knowingly. Yet, when they attempt to keep their wrongdoing hidden in the presence of the great and discerning, they come to ruin—because such guilt, deliberately covered up, destroys them.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Deliberate wrongdoing becomes more destructive when one tries to hide it; concealment before the wise and the morally serious community leads to downfall, implying that confession, transparency, and reform are essential to dharmic living.
In Bhishma’s instruction on dharma (Anushasana Parva), he warns about the fate of immoral people: they knowingly commit sinful acts and then attempt to conceal them, but such secrecy—especially in the face of the noble and discerning—results in their ruin.