Shloka 24
Prajñā as Pratiṣṭhā — Indra–Kāśyapa Saṃvāda (Śānti-parva 12.173)
दस्यवश्लवापि नैच्छन्त तमत्तुं पापकारिणम् | क्रव्यादा अपि राजेन्द्र कृतघ्नं नोपभुज्जते,राजेन्द्र! उन दस्युओंने भी उस पापाचारीका मांस खानेकी इच्छा नहीं की। मांसाहारी जीव-जन्तु भी कृतघ्नका मांस काममें नहीं लेते हैं
dasyavaślavāpi naicchanta tam attuṃ pāpakāriṇam | kravyādā api rājendra kṛtaghnaṃ nopabhuñjate ||
Bhīṣma said: Even the bandits did not wish to eat the flesh of that evil-doer. O king, even flesh-eating creatures do not partake of the body of an ungrateful man—such is the revulsion that ingratitude inspires.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Ingratitude (kṛtaghnatā) is portrayed as a grave moral stain: it is so repulsive that even those who live by violence (bandits) and even carnivores are said to reject association with it. The verse uses hyperbole to stress that gratitude is a foundational virtue in dharma.
Bhishma, instructing the king in Shanti Parva’s ethical discourse, cites a pointed observation: a sinful wrongdoer who is also ungrateful is considered unfit even as food. The statement functions as a moral exemplum within Bhishma’s counsel on righteous conduct.