Mahabharata 3.2.28 — Vana Parva, Adhyaya 2, Shloka 28
ब्राह्मणानुयात्रा—शौनकोपदेशः
Brāhmaṇas Follow into Exile and Śaunaka’s Instruction
स्नेहमूलानि दुःखानि स्नेहजानि भयानि च । शोकहर्षो तथा55यास: सर्व स्नेहात् प्रवर्तते
snehāmūlāni duḥkhāni snehajānī bhayāni ca | śokaharṣas tathāyāsaḥ sarvaṃ snehāt pravartate ||
Vaiśaṃpāyana said: “Sorrow has its root in attachment, and fear too is born of attachment. Grief and delight, and likewise weariness and distress—all of these arise from attachment.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Attachment (sneha) is presented as the underlying cause that generates both negative states (sorrow, fear, fatigue) and even seemingly positive surges (joy), implying that emotional turbulence and suffering are fueled by clinging.
In Vaiśaṃpāyana’s narration, a reflective teaching is stated in aphoristic form: he explains the psychological and ethical consequence of attachment, framing it as the source from which multiple human experiences—grief, joy, fear, and distress—arise.
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