Shloka 34
Cāturāśramya-dharma—Marks of the Four Āśramas (चातुराश्रम्यधर्मः)
अन्यायेन प्रवृत्तानि निवृत्तानि तथैव च । अन्तरा विलयं यान्ति यथा पथि विचक्षुष:
anyāyena pravṛttāni nivṛttāni tathaiva ca | antarā vilayaṃ yānti yathā pathi vicakṣuṣaḥ ||
Bhīṣma said: “Actions that are set in motion through injustice—and even those that are later withdrawn—perish in the interval, just as a blind man on the road comes to ruin mid-way.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma teaches that initiatives rooted in adharma (injustice) are inherently unstable: whether one continues them or later abandons them, they tend to collapse before yielding wholesome results—because the very foundation is flawed.
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma and statecraft. Here he uses a vivid simile—like a blind man on a road—to warn that unjust undertakings lead to ruin mid-course, emphasizing the need for righteous means as well as ends.