Shloka 106
Dāna–Tapaḥ Praśaṃsā and Gṛhastha-Upadeśa
Maitreya
धर्मलोपभयं ते स्यात् तस्माद् धर्म चरोत्तमम् | धर्मज्ञ! मनुष्य जैसा पाप करता है
dharmalopabhayaṃ te syāt tasmād dharma carottamam | dharmajña! manuṣya yathā pāpaṃ karoti, tadanusāreṇaiva tasya phalaṃ bhoktavyaṃ bhavati | ataḥ bhūtapūrva kīṭa! adhunā tvaṃ mṛtyubhayena kathaṃcid api vyathito mā bhūḥ | hā, te dharmalopasya bhayam avaśyaṃ bhavitavyam, tasmād uttama-dharmam ācaran tiṣṭha ||
Vyāsa dit : «Que ta crainte ne soit que celle de la perte du dharma ; c’est pourquoi pratique le dharma le plus élevé. Ô connaisseur du dharma, l’homme doit subir les conséquences selon le péché qu’il commet. Ainsi, ô toi qui fus jadis un ver, ne sois troublé d’aucune manière par la peur de la mort. Crains plutôt, en vérité, le déclin du dharma — et continue donc à vivre selon la conduite la meilleure et la plus noble.»
व्यास उवाच
Educational Q&A
One should not be ruled by fear of death; the proper fear is the fear of losing dharma. Since actions inevitably yield corresponding results, the wise response is to uphold the highest righteous conduct rather than panic about mortality.
Vyāsa addresses a listener described as having once been a ‘worm’ (kīṭa), reassuring him not to be distressed by death. He frames the situation through karmic causality—sins bring matching consequences—and urges steadfast adherence to dharma as the true safeguard.