Shloka 13
धर्मनिन्दा–धर्मोपासनाफलम् तथा साध्वाचारलक्षणम्
Fruits of Disparaging vs. Observing Dharma; Marks of Good Conduct
क्षत्रियो वा महाभागे वैश्यो वा धर्मचारिणि । स्वानि कर्माण्यपाहाय शूद्रकर्म निषेवते
kṣatriyo vā mahābhāge vaiśyo vā dharmacāriṇi | svāni karmāṇy apāhāya śūdrakarma niṣevate ||
Maheshvara dit : « Ô noble dame, ô fidèle au dharma — qu’il soit kshatriya ou vaiśya, s’il abandonne ses devoirs prescrits et s’adonne au travail propre au śūdra, il déchoit de son ordre, devient cause de mélange des varṇas (varṇa-saṅkara) et, dans une naissance ultérieure, naît d’un sein de śūdra. Qui qu’il soit — brāhmaṇa, kshatriya ou vaiśya — par une telle conduite il en vient à la condition et à la disposition d’un śūdra. »
श्रीमहेश्वर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse emphasizes svadharma: one should not abandon one’s prescribed responsibilities and adopt another varṇa’s occupational role out of disregard for dharma; such deviation is presented as ethically and socially destabilizing and as carrying karmic consequences, including a lower rebirth.
Maheshvara (Śiva) is instructing a noble woman addressed as “mahābhāge” and “dharmacāriṇi,” explaining the consequences, within a varṇa-dharma framework, of a Kshatriya or Vaishya giving up their own duties to perform Shudra-type work.