Shloka 18
Cāturāśramya-dharma—Marks of the Four Āśramas (चातुराश्रम्यधर्मः)
भूमिपानां च शुश्रूषा कर्तव्या सर्वदस्युभि: । वेदधर्मक्रियाश्रैव तेषां धर्मो विधीयते
bhūmipālānāṃ ca śuśrūṣā kartavyā sarva-dasyubhiḥ | veda-dharma-kriyāś caiva teṣāṃ dharmo vidhīyate ||
Indra said: “Even those who live by plunder must render service and obedience to the protectors of the land. For them too, the performance of duties and rites enjoined by the Veda is prescribed as their proper dharma.”
इन्द्र उवाच
Educational Q&A
No one is outside dharma: even those inclined to lawlessness are enjoined to respect and serve legitimate protectors of society and to adopt Veda-guided duties and rites, aligning personal conduct with social order.
Indra, speaking as an authority on cosmic and royal order, states a normative rule: even ‘dasyus’ must submit to the land’s guardians and are assigned a prescribed dharma that includes Vedic observances, emphasizing governance and moral regulation.