Shloka 26
Jñāna-yoga and Karma-phala: Manu–Bṛhaspati on Akṣara and the Limits of Mantra
ह्ृदयं पापवृत्तानां पापमाख्याति वैकृतम् । ज्ञानपूर्व विनश्यन्ति गूहमाना महाजने
hṛdayaṃ pāpavṛttānāṃ pāpam ākhyāti vaikṛtam | jñānapūrvaṃ vinaśyanti gūhamānā mahājane ||
Bhishma said: “The very heart of those who live by sin—along with the distortions visible in their condition—betrays their wrongdoing. Those who knowingly commit sin and then try to conceal it from the great and the good are ruined.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Sin is not easily hidden: a person’s inner disposition and outward distortions in behavior or condition tend to reveal wrongdoing. Deliberate sin compounded by concealment—especially from the wise and virtuous—leads to downfall.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on dharma and conduct, Bhīṣma advises about moral causality: he warns that the sinful are exposed by their own inner state and that knowingly hiding sin from respected elders or the righteous results in ruin.