Shloka 27
आत्मानमसमाधाय समाधित्सति यः परान् | विषयेष्विन्द्रियवशं मानवा: प्रहसन्ति तम्,जो राजा स्वयं विषय भोगनेके लिये इन्द्रियोंका दास हो रहा है, अपने मनको काबूमें नहीं रख पाता, वह यदि दूसरोंको सदाचारका उपदेश देने लगे तो लोग उसकी हँसी उड़ाते हैं
ātmānam asamādhāya samādhitsati yaḥ parān | viṣayeṣv indriyavaśaṃ mānavāḥ prahasanti tam ||
Humatsena said: “A man who has not composed his own self, who is himself unsteady and enslaved by the senses amid sense-objects—if he tries to instruct others in self-control and right conduct, people only laugh at him.”
हुमत्सेन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Moral instruction gains authority only when grounded in personal discipline. One who is ruled by sense-pleasures and lacks inner composure cannot credibly teach restraint or dharma; such preaching invites ridicule.
Humatsena is offering an ethical observation within the Shanti Parva’s didactic discourse: he contrasts outward preaching with inward mastery, warning that a person (especially a ruler) who cannot govern himself cannot effectively guide others.