Shloka 18
Dharma-śaṅkā-nivāraṇa: Yudhiṣṭhira’s Response on Karma-Phala and Trust in Dharma
यत् स्वयं कर्मणा किंचित् फलमाप्रोति पूरुष: । प्रत्यक्षमेतल्लोकेषु तत् पौरुषमिति श्रुतम्,तथा मनुष्य स्वयं कर्म करके जो कुछ फल प्राप्त करता है, उसे पुरुषार्थ कहते हैं। यह सब लोगोंको प्रत्यक्ष दिखायी देता है
yat svayaṁ karmaṇā kiñcit phalam āpnoti pūruṣaḥ | pratyakṣam etal lokeṣu tat pauruṣam iti śrutam ||
Yudhiṣṭhira said: “Whatever result a person attains by his own action is seen directly in this world; therefore it is heard and understood as ‘human effort’ (pauruṣa)—the fruit that arises from one’s personal endeavor.”
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse defines pauruṣa (human effort) as the tangible results a person gains through his own actions, emphasizing personal responsibility and the observable link between deed and outcome.
Yudhiṣṭhira is articulating a principle of conduct and causality—asserting that in worldly life people plainly see that outcomes follow from one’s own exertion, and tradition recognizes this as pauruṣa.