Shloka 17
Akṣara–Kṣara Viveka: Vasiṣṭha–Karāla-Janaka Saṃvāda (अक्षर-क्षर विवेकः)
कृतानि यानि कर्माणि दैवतैर्मुनिभिस्तथा । न चरेत् तानि धर्मात्मा श्रुत्वा चापि न कुत्सयेत्
kṛtāni yāni karmāṇi daivatair munibhis tathā | na caret tāni dharmātmā śrutvā cāpi na kutsayet ||
Even if certain deeds have been done by gods and by sages, a righteous person should not imitate those deeds when they are improper. And even upon hearing of them, he should not fall into condemning those deities or sages.
पराशर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Do not treat the actions of exalted beings as automatic permission for oneself: a dharmic person must use moral discernment and avoid imitating improper deeds, while also maintaining reverence and restraint by not maligning gods or sages upon hearing such accounts.
In Śānti Parva’s instruction on dharma, Parāśara gives a guideline for ethical judgment: stories about deities and ṛṣis may include questionable acts, but the listener should neither copy them nor turn that knowledge into blame or contempt toward those revered figures.