Shloka 31
अव्यक्त-प्रबोधः (Awakening to the Unmanifest): The 25th and 26th Principles and Eligibility for Brahma-vidyā
जनक उवाच कि कर्म दूषयत्येनमथो जातिर्महामुने । संदेहो मे समुत्पन्नस्तन्मे व्याख्यातुमहसि,जनकने पूछा--महामुने! मनुष्यको उसके कर्म दूषित करते हैं या जाति? मेरे मनमें यह संदेह उत्पन्न हुआ है, आप इसका विवेचन कीजिये
janaka uvāca: kiṁ karma dūṣayaty enam atho jātir mahāmune | saṁdeho me samutpannas tan me vyākhyātum arhasi ||
Janaka said: “O great sage, what is it that truly taints a person—his actions, or his birth? A doubt has arisen in my mind; please explain this to me.”
जनक उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a central ethical inquiry: whether moral worth and impurity arise from one’s deeds (karma) or from one’s birth/lineage (jāti). It invites a dharma-based evaluation that prioritizes responsibility and conduct over inherited status.
In the Śānti Parva’s instructional setting, King Janaka addresses a great sage and asks for clarification on a debated social and moral issue—whether a person is judged and ‘tainted’ by actions or by birth—requesting a reasoned exposition.