Shloka 20
कालनियमः शोकशमनं च
Kāla as Regulator; Pacification of Grief
“मैं प्रत्यक्ष देख रहा हूँ और तुम भी देख सकते हो, जो लोग धनोपार्जनके प्रयत्नमें लगे हुए हैं, उनके लिये त्याज्य कर्मोंको छोड़ना अत्यन्त कठिन हो रहा है ।। ये वित्तमभिपद्यन्ते सम्यक्त्वं तेषु दुर्लभम् । द्रह्मतः प्रैति तत् प्राहु: प्रतिकूलं यथातथम्,'जो धनके पीछे पड़े हुए हैं, उनमें साधुता दुर्लभ है; क्योंकि जो लोग दूसरोंसे द्रोह करते हैं, उन्हींको धन प्राप्त होता है, ऐसा कहा जाता है तथा वह मिला हुआ धन प्रकारान्तरसे प्रतिकूल ही होता है
vaiśampāyana uvāca | ye vittam abhipadyante samyaktvaṃ teṣu durlabham | drohataḥ praiti tat prāhuḥ pratikūlaṃ yathā-tatham ||
I see it plainly—and you too may observe it—that for those absorbed in the pursuit of wealth, it becomes exceedingly difficult to abandon actions that ought to be renounced. Among people who run after riches, true rectitude is rare; for it is commonly said that wealth comes to those who act with malice toward others, and even when such wealth is obtained, it turns adverse in one way or another.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse warns that intense pursuit of wealth makes moral clarity and renunciation of improper actions difficult; riches often arise through harming others, and such gains tend to bring adverse consequences.
In the didactic setting of Śānti Parva, Vaiśampāyana reports an ethical observation: society shows that those chasing wealth struggle to give up blameworthy deeds, and the wealth so acquired is frequently tied to hostility and later misfortune.